The Journey of the Second Padawan
by Vendicor
Summary: Obi-wan Kenobi first thought he would get his Padawan the second he saw the young padawan walk down the steps of the transport. However it was the second individual who came next was the one he was expecting... sort of. Follow Mat as he goes through the clone wars, fighting through a terrifying and eye-opening war. (Image does not belong to me.)
1. Prologue

Christophisis.

Once a peaceful world, now ravaged by the torments of war. A major battle takes place the likes of which the planet has likely never seen before. An intense battle has sprung forth on the once peaceful planet between the Separatists and the Republic and it's touch and go between the two warring armies with so far none of them gaining any foothold over their opponents.

The droid army is massive, numerous, and deadly with a veritable and nearly unstoppable force of droids mixed with heavy units ranging from tanks, droidekas, B2 battle droids and the giant Octuptarra combat tri-droid walkers that can lay down heavy blaster shots from their three rotating gun mounts. On top of the Separatists having a massive army of droids in the streets with the B1 battle droids, the Republic clone army seems to be having quite the trouble in fighting back.

The Republic clone soldiers on Christophisis have the standard clone troopers with them with experienced officers such as Commander Cody and Captain Rex to lead them, but they also have two legendary jedi's there to help turn the tide when things look rough. Jedi Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker are there to lead and help the troopers push back the droid army hounding them. That alone however would not be enough to hold back their enemies when it's their ace in the hole that's kept things at a veritable stalemate: The AV-7 Antivehicle artillery cannons. These giant machine are movable, only needs one tank gunner to fire, and can take out both tanks and groups of infantry droids in one hit. Their long range capabilities also allow them to keep the enemy well out of their range of fire to hit them.

Because of this, the droid army commander Whorm Loathsom was forced to pull his troops back before he lose everything to their cannons and devise a new strategy.

With the respite now given to everyone, injuries were being tended to, wounded and the dead moved, barricades being setup, ammo and weapon counts were being accounted for at the opportunity. Both jedi having played a significant role in the recent attack against them take a moment to breathe in relief before a transport shuttle flies overhead.

"Looks like help has arrived." Obi-wan says to his former padawan with A2-D2 the astromech droid rolling up to them and beeping excitedly. "Our cruiser must be back."

"Which means we'll be able to get our reinforcements." Anakin says as both jedi walk towards the landing shuttle with several clone troopers following them and many more around continue to do their jobs.

"Well then, it looks like our problems are solved; fresh troops, new supplies, and perhaps they've brought my new padawan with them." Obi-wan hopes.

"Do you think it's a good idea to bring a padawan learner into all this?" Anakin counters, the idea of a padawan no less irking the headstrong Jedi Master.

"I spoke to Master Yoda about it. You should put in a request for one. You'd make a good teacher." Obi-wan compliments his former student.

"Hahaha," Unfortunately he still isn't budging on the matter. "No, thanks."

"Anakin, teaching is a privilege, and it's part of a Jedi's responsibility to help train the next generation." Obi-wan tries to sway him.

"A padawan would just slow me down." He finishes saying as they stop in front of the transport shuttle. In front of them, a clone trooper gives the signal for the hatch to open. With slow movement, the main door of the craft opens up, revealing the occupant standing in front of the door, ready to disembark.

Padawan learner Ahsoka Tano, a togruta female, 14-years old calmly steps off the ramp towards the two Jedi Masters. "A youngling." Obi-wan comments on the age appearance of the person coming to them.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Anakin bluntly asks. R2 beeps excitedly at the new arrival

"I'm Ahsoka. Master Yoda sent me." She informs them while walking a little closer. "We were told to tell you both that you must get back to the Jedi Temple immediately. There's an emergency." She informs them. Anakin looks annoyed at the emergency that doesn't seem to be acknowledged at their current predicament right now while Obi-wan looks around like he's looking for someone else.

"Well, I don't know if you've noticed but we're—"

"Hold on a second Anakin." Obi-wan stops him from talking with a hand gesture before setting his sights back on the youngling in front of him. "You said 'we.' What do you mean? I didn't see anyone else disembark with you." He tell her. The choice of words she spoke indicates that she and someone else came to tell the two of them about the emergency at the temple but she was the only one to get off. Not even the pilot got off either.

"What?! Didn't see—" Ahsoka says in surprise and confusion before looking left then right before finally turning around. "Ughhh." She sulks for some reason before cupping her hands over her mouth. "Mat! Get your butt out here!" She yells back into the ship.

"Ah! Geez hold on a second Ahsoka!" A new voice can be heard from inside and some rustling sounds. "I'm coming I'm coming!" The new person grumbles from inside the ship before he starts making his way out to meet his new master. "Seriously give me a second Ahsoka. Don't get your- Arh!"

Unfortunately his first impression for the two Jedi who've been fighting for quite awhile now along with his friend happens to be him falling and rolling down the ships ramp.

"Ow! Oh! Oof! Crap! Ow! Arhhhhhh…" He finally stops right at the three Jedi's feet in a heap. All three of them stare at the crumpled mess in front of them, even a few clones working nearby heard the tumbling noise and stopped to watch the clumsy Jedi roll right at their feet. "Ow." He groans one more time before finally reorienting himself and jumping to his feet. He adopts a firm and straight stance as dignified as he can make, despite the fail he just did not even a minute ago. He wears a white loose shirt with a black vest over it for the top of his attire, including a silver necklace with a sword on it, and black pants that don't compromise the athletic and acrobatic capabilities most Jedi are known for. Black short hair and blue eyes stare at the two Jedi Masters in front of him. "Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker and Jedi Master Obi-wan Kenobi. It is an honor to meet you both. Padawan learner Matthew Morrow at your service. Mat for short." He says and gives them an honorable bow with his right arm tucked in front of him with his left behind his back. Once he finishes and stands to his full height, he gives them the best smile he can muster.

No one says anything to that.

*Slap*

Ahsoka can't help but facepalm at the first impression her friend just made.

"Is that a Jedi?" Two random clones nearby converse.

"I… don't know."

Mat leans over to Ahsoka. "I didn't make a good first impression did I?" He whisper asks her from the corner of his mouth, despite the two masters being able to hear him from right in front of him.

"What was your first clue?" She says to him annoyed after taking her hand away from her face.

*Smack*

And hitting him upside the head.

"Yeeesss?"

* * *

 **This was an idea that's been in my head for awhile now and for some reason I just went ahead and deiced to go for it in finally making it into a legitimate story here. I love the clone wars series and all the characters that appeared in it. The combat was epic at times and the plot for a lot of the episodes was pretty cool too. I've seen a few stories that have their own OC's in the series but not really as much to my liking. It's high time I make this story legit because I don't ever want to forget what I've come up with for this series.**

 **I'm going to see how many people take to this idea first before I decide to devote more time to it, especially with school pretty close to starting, or have already started for some of you.**

 **Either way I am excited to finally have this put down and hope a lot of people like this as much as I do.**

 **Thank you for those of you taking the time to read this and giving it a chance on this first point. Thanks, have a great day, and have fun reading.**


	2. 1 The Battle Before

"Out of all the times to do something stupid you do that right in front of them?!"

"Hey! It wasn't my intention to fall like that. Give me a break."

"You realize who they are right? You couldn't have made a better first impression than that?!"

"I told you I didn't mean to! You were the one that was yelling at me to get going so I'm sorry I wasn't on YOUR page!"

While the two Padawans bicker back and forth, Anakin and Obi-wan glance back and forth between the two of them. After Mat unfortunately took his spill in front of everyone and tried to salvage is embarrassed pride, Ahsoka couldn't help but get annoyed by the actions of her friend since they came together on the ship. "Huh. I wasn't expecting this." Anakin says as the two continue to argue.

"Yes, same here." Obi-wan agrees before taking a step forward and getting the attention of the new arrivals. "Excuse me?"

"And I—"

"But you—"

The two of them stop mid sentence at the older Jedi's interruption. They disengage from each other and look to him and its only then do they blush embarrassed at the scene they made in front of the two. "I believe you two have a message to give us?" Obi-wan asks them.

"Oh right!" Mat gets a look of realization on his face at the main reason they were sent here to the planet. "We don't have the message on us. You two need to go back to the Jedi Temple because something important has come up that requires you two." He explains to the two masters on what they need to do.

Anakin looks skeptic at the info. "Yeah well, as I was saying before, I don't know if you've noticed, but we're in a bit of an emergency right here." He gestures to the ground.

' _From the devastation from the trip down, they definitely look like they're in tight spot.'_ Mat thinks as he glances at the destroyed buildings and wounded soldiers around.

"Our communications have been a bit unreliable, but we've been calling for help." Obi-wan continues explaining.

Ahsoka and Mat look at each other before back to the masters. "Master Yoda hadn't heard from you so he sent us to deliver the message." She gestures to him and her.

"Since comms were out, personally delivering the message was the only way." Mat adds.

"Huuuu… oh great!" Anakin sighs before speaking in an annoyed tone. "They don't even know we're in trouble." He complains at the situation their in. Before they were having trouble getting reinforcements after being cut off for so long but it's even worse since not everywhere do they know about the fighting they're in.

Ahsoka and Mat think for a second before Mat snaps his fingers at an idea. "The cruiser."

"Your right." She agrees before turning to the distraught Jedi Master. "Maybe you can relay a signal through the cruiser that dropped us off." She tells them their idea. In the hopeless situation that they find themselves in on this stalemate of a battle, they find just a little bit of hope as they both smile.

* * *

Later after making their way to a nearby holoterminal, they begin to enact the idea that they came up with but unfortunately the situation still doesn't look good.

"We're under attack by Separatist warships." A clone bridge ensign pilot back on the cruiser tells the Jedi of the situation in orbit through the terminal. "But I'll try to make contact with the Jedi temple for you. Standby." He tells them as his form disappears, replaced with a beeping noise coming from the a computer as it tries to make contact. As the connection tries to be established, R2-D2 rolls up the computer too as all the Jedi look around uneasily and worried that this may not work after all.

As the terminal takes shape, everyone has a look of relief on their face as the form of Master Yoda becomes apparent. "Master Kenobi, glad Ahsoka and Matthew found you I am." He greets him but Obi-wan has no time for pleasantries sadly.

"Master Yoda, we are trapped here and vastly outnumbered." He begins to explain the dire situation. "We are in no position to go anywhere or do anything. Our support ships have all been destroyed."

' _Geez. I know things were bad but I didn't know they were in this deep.'_ Mat thinks at how bad things seem to be.

"Send reinforcements to you, we will. A—" The transmission begins to sputter and break apart.

"Master Yoda… Master Yoda!" Obi-wan tries to get him back but can't. Mat steps closer to the computer and fiddles with the controls.

"C'mon c'mon." He grunts as he tries to clear the transmission but it's not coming from them.

The previous ensign clone from before appears back on screen. "We've lost the transmission, sir." He confirms Mat's suspicion.

Two more clones walk into the screen, one being the same rank and the other in full armor. "We have to leave orbit. More enemy ships have just arrived. We'll get back to you as soon as we can." And with that last sentence, the transmission is cut off entirely.

"I guess we'll have to hold out a little longer." Anakin points out the obvious to everyone.

"Great." Mat groans at how bad things seem.

"At least we got the message out. That's something." Ahsoka says in hopes of easing her troubled friend.

He does gain a smile knowing that they will get some backup hopefully soon. "Yeah, your right."

"In any case, I'd like to apologize young ones." Obi-wan speaks, getting the two's attentions. "It's about time for a proper introduction." He proposes and steps up closer to the two. They both give their best smiles and stand straight.

"We're the new Padawan learners." Ahsoka answers. "I'm Ahsoka Tano." She introduces herself.

"And as I said before, I am Matthew Morrow."

"Two Padawans? But I thought you only put in a request for one?" Anakin asks his former master with a bit of surprise.

"I did." He confirms what he's asking.

"That would be me sir." Mat steps up as dignified as he can with a slight bow. "I was the one that was assigned to you Master Kenobi."

"And I was assigned to Master Skywalker." Ahsoka says, pointing to the now very surprised and stunned Jedi Master.

"What?! Hehe No, no, no, no, no." Anakin repeats in disbelief. There must be some mistake. He's the one that wanted the Padawan." He points an accusing finger to the other master.

"And he got one. Me." Mat gestures to himself

"Yes, Master Yoda was very specific. I'm assigned to Anakin Skywalker and he to Obi-wan Kenobi, and they are to supervise out Jedi training." Ahsoka speaks and explains very clearly to the confused master, even getting a nod from Mat. Obi-wan for his part smirks at the uncomfortableness that befalls his former student.

"But that doesn't make any sense." Anakin proceeds to say before being cut off by Obi-wan.

"We'll have to sort this out later." He eases his complains before focusing on the matter at hand. "It won't be long before those droids figure out a way around our cannons."

"I'll check on Rex in the lookout post." Anakin grumbles at the situation he's in before starting to walk away.

"You'd better take her with you." Before he gets far, Obi-wan proposes he do. Anakin doesn't even turn around and he looks like he wants to reject the idea but doesn't say anything.

Mat taps Ahsoka's shoulder and smiles. "Good luck."

*Smack*

"Owwww." He groans as she responds with a friendly punch to his arm. She returns the smile and goes off with her new, albeit reluctant, master.

"Don't worry. She'll be fine." Obi-wan reassures him as they watch the two walk off.

"Oh, of that I'm sure." Mat replies as he rubs his arms before giving his master a smile. "It's him I'm worried about."

Obi-wan shakes his head at the no doubt similarities the two will have for each other. "Anyway, why don't we go check up on the troops?" He proposes and walks off.

"Right behind you master." Mat says and walks with his new master.

* * *

At first when I was told I was going to be given my new master so soon, I was both ecstatic and just a little nervous at the rapid development. However after taking a little bit to digest the information I am now content with the idea of being the Padawan to a master ahead of others. Even more so I felt at ease and relaxed when I heard that Ahsoka was going to get a master also and that hers and I's masters typically worked together so many times, allowing Ahsoka and I to hang out still, even when we're learning.

To be honest Ahsoka and I aren't the absolute best of friends. When we both were taken to the temple to learn the ways of the jedi, we only saw each other on occasion but never actively made the effort to get to know each other, her being a togruta and me a human so we came from pretty different places in our lives, we just simply focused on our studies and that's it. Only in the last couple years did we get to know each other a little more and become good friends. Now I hope even more so do I expect us to become very close friends since we'll no doubt be seeing and fighting together in the future. Although to be honest I wasn't necessarily expecting us to get our masters in the middle of a war zone but the way this war is going things are definitely going to get complicated like this.

Right now Master Kenobi is giving me a bit of a tour of the makeshift base of operations the Republic has here, where the fighting is coming from and where to expect the droid army to come from while Ahsoka has gone off who knows where with her new reluctant master.

I wish the both of them luck.

"You seem a little… young to be a Padawan." My master points out to me as we make our way through some troops ranks and its true. Usually Padawans are a bit older than Ahsoka and I but because of our skills and the training we both made at the temple were we able to be formally given our new masters.

"Yes, while that is true sir, I can assure you that Ahsoka and I are not lacking in the skills necessary to be both of your Padawans." I try to make sure to him that my age on the matter won't compromise my skills in being his Padawan.

"Oh I don't doubt that. I just need to make sure you know that combat in real life is nothing like how it is back in the temple. You're going to facing a lot of blaster fire soon I'm sure of it." He answers a bit grimly but I'm not deterred.

"I understand sir. I've learned everything I can when it comes to blaster combat and how to deal with the sheer number of blaster bolts that fly around in these types of battles. Even going as far as to learn a little about properly using some blasters too, just in case I happen to lose my lightsaber." I add and pat the handle on my belt. For some reason I've always been a bit fascinated with the use of blasters but I haven't had a lot of time to extensively train myself in blaster combat what with my studies to become a Jedi monopolizing most of my time.

"You expect to lose it?" He asks with a playful smile.

I shake my head. "No self-respecting Jedi expects to lose their lightsaber sir, but it can never hurt to be prepared should that happen." I explain.

"I suppose that's true. Hopefully that doesn't."

"Me too Master." We lull into a comfortable silence as we continue to pass some troops that are still gathering everything together. "I suppose the battle hasn't been going well for anyone?" I can't help but ask as how battered a good number of troops look.

"No, it hasn't. We've been ambushed, betrayed and taken advantage of too many times to mount a proper defense but lately it's been more of a stalemate. Those cannons we have are basically the only thing we have that's been able to keep the droids and their tanks at bay but I worry they'll figure out some way soon to destroy them." My master explains in a tired but still grim tone.

' _Betrayal? I'll have to inquire about that later.'_ I make a mental note for later. The cannons he mentions gets my attention too and I hope to get a closer look at them. Not just blasters gain my interest, lots of different weapons peak my interest. I look up to take note of what I think is a higher ranking clone giving orders to his men ahead of us. "Who's that?"

"Hm? Ah, that's Commander Cody. A good solider with quite a knack for combat and commanding troops." My master comments as we walk closer to him. Commander Cody's armor looks about the same as what most clone troopers wear but his is painted with yellow highlight stripes to signify his higher rank. On top of that he also has an improved helmet with the ability to see longer distances, no doubt to help command his troops better. Once we do Cody notices us and nods for his troop to carry out his orders. "Cody, how go the troops?" Master Kenobi asks.

"Their managing General. I'd have preferred to get some new men and troops soon but as long as the droids don't go throwing everything they got at us all at once I think we can manage." He gives his estimates to his superior before glancing towards me. "Who's this?"

"Ah, Cody I'd like you to meet Matthew Morrow, my new Padawan." It feels good for my master to say that. I stand up straighter at my introduction.

"Oh yeah. I remember you mentioning you were requested one." He nods to my master before looking back at me. "Commander Cody. At your service General." He introduces and salutes me personally.

I can't help but smile at the instant rank I've already attained before returning my own salute to him. "Pleasure to meet you Commander." Once I put my arm down, I extend my hand to him. He looks down at it for a second before we shake hands firmly. "But please, just call me Mat."

"Hehe, you got it sir. And Cody if you wish for me." I nod at him and stand straight.

"Well, nice to see you two getting along so well." My master can't help but say from next to us. We share a laugh at that before he turns his head elsewhere. "Listen, I'm going to go inspect the outer defenses. Why don't you give Mat here a rundown of how we operate before the next wave hits?" He asks the clone commander.

"Can do sir." He salutes him, to which my master nods approvingly before looking at me.

"Now you be good for him. We don't want a repeat of what happened before?"

"Ohhh." I groan at the memory of my blunder down the ramp.

"Take care you two and be ready." He instructs us one last time before he goes to do what he sets out to do.

"Yes sir!"

"You got it Master." Once my master gets out of hearing distance, I turn to the commander with a smile on my face. "Where are those artillery cannons?"

* * *

I let out a long winded whistle as I stare up at the giant heavy pieces of ordinance in front of me. "Wow."

"Beauty's aren't they?" Cody next to me asks but I continue to stare. "These are—"

"AV-7 heavy artillery cannons. Powerful pieces of heavy ordinance with massive long range capability with the firepower and rate of fire to match."

Cody stares at me for a second before nodding. "That's right."

I get a little sheepish at my sudden interruption of him. "Sorry. Weapons are kind of my thing, both small like blasters to, well, these." I gesture to the giant cannons. "Saw these things from the ship on the way down and I just had to get a closer look at them."

"I'm glad I could oblige General- uh Mat." He corrects himself. "You know I don't know many Jedi that like to learn about these types of weapons." He points out.

I give him a sly smile and cross my arms as I look at him. "Not many Jedi are me." I boast. Some of the instructors found it a bit odd with my interest in this stuff but as long as it didn't interfere with my training, they let it slide.

"You too huh?" A new voice says. Looking to the side, we see a new clone walk up to us without his helmet, showing us his shaved head, which he also bears the captain rank. His armor has blue markings and even an added black piece of armor on his shoulder. Who walks next to him though gets my attention as its none other than Ahsoka.

"Hey Rex." Cody regards the new clones before gesturing to me. "Mat, this is Captain Rex. Rex, this is Mat, General Kenobi's new Padawan." He introduces us.

"Pleasure to meet you captain." I give him a slight bow and smile. "Hey Ahsoka."

"Hey Mat. Your master drop you off too?" She asks, just a bit annoyed in the tone of her voice.

Confused, Cody and I look at each other before glancing back at the two. Rex sighs and walks past us to walk further down the line of cannons. "C'mon, let's walk and talk at least." Shrugging we both follow after them.

* * *

"General Skywalker? But I thought he was very clear he wasn't going to take any Padawans?" Cody asks Rex, who nods.

"Yes, he was. And he was very willing to drop her off on me… no offense." He adds the last part directed to Ahsoka, who grumbles a little. "What about you? General Kenobi do the same?"

"Yes and no. He sort of asked if I could show him around and I was alright with it. You should have seen this kid earlier when he saw the cannons up close." Cody leans in and mutters the last part to Rex.

"I'm walking right next to you." Mat grumbles out loud from their side.

"He was ogling them wasn't he?" Ahsoka surmises, making him look at her with a cross look.

"I don't ogle!"

"You were ogling them a little." Mat looks at Cody like he was betrayed before looking forward with his arms crossed and pouts, drawing a laugh from his friend and a chuckle from the clones.

"He's always been kind of like that. Being at the temple all the time he doesn't have a lot of time to see some of the weapons he studies first hand so first chance he gets, he'll be happy." She says with a playful smile at him.

"Definitely knows his stuff too." Cody compliments before patting his shoulder, drawing Mat out of his funk and getting him to smile. "Knew exactly what type of cannons they were just from looking at them."

"Can't wait to see them in action." Mat mutters as he glances at the machines.

"Hmhm." Ahsoka chuckles at the giddiness of her friend's attitude. She too glances at the cannons and takes note of an improvement they could make. "Have you thought about moving that line back, captain?" Ahsoka asks Rex as they continue to walk past the cannons. "They'd have better cover that way."

"Your right Ahsoka." Mat agrees with her, taking a slightly more serious tone as he stares at the giant guns. "On top of the guns having those buildings as cover, it'd also make the droids have to push further to try and get to them."

"Good suggestion." Cody says. "We've thought about doing that, but…" He glances to Rex.

"But General Skywalker thinks they're fine where they are." He tells them of why they haven't done it in the first place.

"Soooo…" Ahsoka begins to bring up another topic with Rex. "If you're a captain and I'm a Jedi," Her steps slow for a second before picking up the pace. "Then, technically, I outrank you, right?"

"Same with you Cody?" Mat asks his escort too.

"That's the chain of command basically." He replies.

"Hm," Rex scoffs at the blunt basic answer before giving his own view on the matter. "In my book, experience outranks everything."

"Well, if experience outranks everything, then I guess we need to start getting some right Mat?" She asks her friend, who nods.

"Yep. Can't have inexperienced people out on the battlefield now can we? That's how they get themselves killed." He answers his own question. Ahsoka and Mat may be knew to the real life scenarios of war and not simulations but they know it's for keeps if a fatal blaster bolt hits them.

"Definitely." Ahsoka agrees with the notion before what sounds like some sort of energy build up and discharge makes them all look towards the sound. "What's that?"

The clones plus Mat all tense up as they spot the slowly expanding red dome barrier of a ray shield. "That's… a ray shield." Mat worriedly points out.

"Great, just what we need." Cody groans.

"It's going to make thinks damn near impossible." Rex dauntingly says as he stares at the energy field. "If you want experience, little ones, it looks like you're about to get plenty." He grimly tells them as they watch the shield continue to expand.

"We have to find our masters. Let's go." Mat proposes and runs off with the others following close behind.

* * *

Not long later, both clones and Padawans find Obi-wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker before they meet at a large holomap terminal of the battlefield in order to make their next plan.

"The shield generator is somewhere in this area." Obi-wan points to the center of bright energy expending on the holomap. "They're slowly increasing the diameter and keeping it just ahead of their troops."

"Heavy cannons are going to be useless against that." Rex says.

"Close range combat seems the only choice we have." Cody points out.

"As they get closer, I suppose we could try to draw them into the buildings. That might level the playing field a bit." Obi-wan proposes for their plan as he gestures to some of the larger taller buildings on the map.

"But it'd only be a temporary solution." Mat says. "Those tanks they could still move forward and take out the cannons once the shield gets to them. After they do that, there's nothing stopping them from turning their guns on the buildings we occupy and reducing them to rubble, with us in them." He grimly says. His master purses his lips in thought at what else they could do.

"If that shield's going to be such a problem, why don't we just take it out?" Ahsoka obviously proposes they do as if it'd be a cake walk.

"That would be the smarter thing to do, but…"

"Easier said than done." Rex finishes Mat's sentence.

"Right."

"Well, I, for one…" Anakin begins speaking, getting all the attention as he clears his throat, "Agree with her." He finishes saying just a bit quieter. "Someone has to get to that shield generator and destroy it. That's the key." He backs his Padawans plans.

"Right, then. Maybe you two can tiptoe through the enemy lines and solve this particular problem together."

"Can do, Master Kenobi." Ahsoka replies.

"I'll decide what we do." Anakin immediately says right after.

"If Rex and I can engage them here," Obi-wan points to a particular spot on the map, "You two might have a chance to get through their lines undetected here." He points to another spot further down and closer to the dome.

"They won't have much time. The droids far outnumber us, so our ability to street-fight is limited without the use of heavy cannons." Rex begins to explain and points to where the tanks are moving. "They'll march forward under the protection of their shield until they're right on top of our cannons and they will blow them away. Just like what he said earlier, after the cannons are gone, there'll be nothing stopping them from wiping us out. Buildings or no." Rex gestures to Mat, who nods at the statement. In this next battle, the Republics heavy cannons and the Separatists shield generator are the key factors. Whichever side loses theirs first, loses the battle.

"We'll figure out a way. Come on master, lets go." Ahsoka optimistically says and walks with her slightly annoyed master following.

"If we survive this snips, you and I are going to have a talk." He scolds her as they walk away.

"Sounds like they're getting along just fine." Mat sarcastically says as he watches his friend and her master go.

"They do make… quite a pair, don't they, sir?" Rex asks to Obi-wan. "You think they have a chance?"

"They'd better. If they can't turn off that shield generator before it reaches the heavy cannons, there'll be no escape for any of us." Obi-wan states the grim truth about their situation.

"Master, what about Cody and I?" Mat asks with a step forward and gestures to both him and the yellow striped clone. Since they haven't gotten any orders so far on the plan, Mat is curious on what the plan is for them.

"We can't afford to let a single droid get past the lines and wreck havoc on our base of operations. On top of them possibly damaging the cannons with even their small arms fires, I don't think any of us are privy to letting them get even close to our wounded." Everyone else nods easily at that statement. It'd be a slaughter for sure if any of the droids manage to get where the wounded clones are. "Therefore, Cody you'll be commanding the bulk of our forces on the main street path to slow the droids as much as you can while Ahsoka and Anakin focus on taking out the shield generator." Cody nods at the Generals orders before Obi-wan looks to his Padawan. "After Rex and I provide the distraction necessary to get them to the generator, we'll be surrounded and in the thick of it with droids. Think you can help clear us a path back to our troops?" He asks Mat with an encouraging smile.

Mat looks at his master in awe for a second before reaching down and pulling his lightsaber off his belt. After going through a quick check-up of his weapon and symbol of his status as a Jedi, he holds it firmly in his right hand before standing straight up and giving his Master a confident look. "I am Master. I won't let you down."

* * *

 **Took a little too long than I would have preferred in getting this done and this isn't even what I had originally intended. This chapter was supposed to be twice as long with the addition of the battle but the time of release between this and the prologue was getting a bit too long than I was comfortable with.**

 **So I opted instead to split the chapter up with the battle and getting off of the planet for the next chapter. Sorry again folks and hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to get out. Unfortunately my college classes are starting to pick up so writing for all my work just might take a bit of a hit but I'm not too sure. Nothing too strenuous I think so far but things will manage.**

 **Anyway, thank you all for reading, fave, follow, review, have a great day, and as always have fun reading.**


	3. 2 The Battle of Christophisis

Nervous.

That's what I'm kind of feeling right now. I am standing in front and in the middle of the street where the fighting has been for the troops on this planet. Lots of debris and rubble has been placed all around in front to give the clones and I some form of cover when the shooting starts.

The droids may be willing to walk in giant columns in the open but our troops are not that suicidal.

After deciding to try to punch through the shield using the heavy cannons on their maximum power output, which ultimately failed, we're going ahead with the plan before on my master Obi-wan Kenobi and Captain Rex distracting the droids to focus attention on them rather than chance a look at my friend Ahsoka Tano and her master Anakin Skywalker while they go to take out the shield generator. Commander Cody has the job of commanding the troops on the main road while I get ready to go along a road to the side that leads into a building and out where the distraction team will be.

That's the path I need to clear in order to get them back to our line.

"You okay kid?" I brought out of my thoughts from the voice next to me. Turning I see Cody eyeing me through his helmet. All around the troops are doing some last minute checks on their weapons from behind all the cover we have.

"Yeah, yeah I'm alright." I reply and turn back to the front but I think the nervousness is evident in my voice.

"You don't look alright."

"Just… this'll be my first engagement in real life combat. Not a training room or simulation but the chances of living and dying are here. Just… I'm a little nervous is all." I explain the best I can on how I feel. While I am excited to finally going out and have the potential to make a difference in this war, I can't help but feel just a bit of my nerves creep up on me and that's good in a way. I need to keep in mind that this is no game.

"Never seen a Jedi nervous before." One of the clones nearby pipes up to some of his brothers.

"Padawan." I call out, making it known I heard him. "I'm technically not a Jedi yet." I pull out my lightsaber and clutch it in my right hand. "Not a Jedi Knight by any means, but as long as I don't get cocky or do anything stupid, eventually I can make it."

"Well, guess this'll be your first test then in the field." Cody says and pats my shoulder, comforting me a little. "Just stick with us. You back us up and we'll back you up. Right men?!" He directs the last part to the others.

"Yeah!"

"We got this!"

At the multiple confident voices from around pumped and ready, my nerves take a hit and I can breathe just a bit easier. I sport a smile and prepare myself in time as the shield comes ever so closer to us. I turn back to them to go over the plan one last time. "Alright men!" I yell loudly to get their attention. "The enemy'll be coming in full force towards us down this road. My master, General Kenobi, Captain Rex and their squad will distract them and be in the thick of it down there!" I point towards the column of droids heading towards us. "I'll be heading along this side road here to get to them faster and hopefully bring them back a lot safer than going straight down the middle of the crossfire!" I turn back to the men. "Think you guys can give us some covering fire on the way back?!"

"Yes sir!" They respond firmly and ready to put the plan into action.

"That's what I like to hear!" I say smiling and turn back to the shield as it's only a dozen feet from us and rapidly closing. "We just have to hold out till General Skywalker and Ahsoka take down the shield!" Looking again it's almost on us. "It's almost here! Everyone get ready!" I order with my left arm raised into the air. They all hunker down into their respective cover positions and I step forward, making sure I'm in a good spot to deflect shots while not possibly getting hit from behind. "Ready…"

The shield is right on us.

"Aim…!" The rapport of the clones blasters ready to fire go off behind me. "And…!" The shield passes right over us.

My lightsaber turns on, revealing its blue blade for all to see as I hold it to my right.

"FIRRRRRRE!" I bring my arm down.

A flurry and massive crossfire of blaster bolts both blue and red tear through the air around everyone. Quickly I pull up my saber and begin deflecting the shots pointed at or near me. It's a wonderful feeling as the points of energy that would otherwise kill someone are just as easily pushed in a completely different direction and possibly saving the lives of some random clones around me. I can hit and blast back a lot more shots around me with the amount of movement I go from left to right in my one spot and it works. Already the droids had pushed a considerable amount thanks to their damndable shield but now that we're in we're dwindling their numbers.

Unfortunately the heavy weapons they possess, their tanks and those tri-legged spider walkers start opening fire and hammering our position. The clones behind me are forced to take cover from the force of the blasts and I grunt a little from the debris landing on me but I hold firm and so do the troops. Past the droids, I can barely make out the distraction team moving in and fighting the droids in the back amidst the blaster crossfire I'm in but I see them nonetheless. _'Time to move!'_ I deflect one more shot towards my head before I go behind cover opposite from Cody on the other side of the street. "Cody! You're in command now! I'm going to get our people back! Give 'em hell!"

"You got it General! Alright men!" He yells over the blaster sounds around us. "Let's show these tin-cans what happens when they mess with the Republic's finest!"

A roar of approval goes around as they all return fire in greater number. _'Now's my chance!'_ With the force, I take advantage of the cover fire and launch myself high into the air from behind my cover towards the entrance of the side street connected to the main road. I land on the ground with ease before straightening up and going forward, swinging my lightsaber all around me against the shots aimed in my direction. Plenty of droids already came forward and started infesting the side street, making it harder for the team to get back to the rest of the army. "Not if I have anything to say about it." I mutter to myself and push forward before is start slicing through the droids. I cut one B1's head off with easy before stabbing a B2 and rolling around it and cutting through more of them. They continue to try to shoot me dead but ultimately they miss or I deflect their shots right back at them that ends them. One B2 super battle droid tries to knock me out with a swipe at my head but I duck under it, chop off its arm before following up with cutting it in half at the waist.

It's rince and repeat at this point since there are only a few stragglers along this way and not the bulk of their forces but if I don't help clear this way soon then the clones will get hit hard running back. I soon make it to the building that connects to the road and head through the main doors. The place is wrecked with tons of pieces of the building littering the area but that's the most I see as I focus on going forward and push past the doors leading to the other side.

I bring my blade up just in time to deflect a shot that nearly ended me. Taking a more accurate look shows Captain Rex and his squad moving and shooting backwards towards me. It looks like they took some casualties but not a whole lot I move forward past some clones, deflecting more bolts as I go until I come to Rex who's shooting at every droid he can with his blaster pistols. "Captain!" I get his attention as I move a little in front of him. "It's time to go! I'll cover for you!"

"Right General! Retreating cover fire!" He orders his men and the clones of his squad start piling into the building before they take up position to cover us. We both slowly move back with him crouching and firing around me while I focus on deflecting the shots away from us.

"Rex, where's General Kenobi?!" I ask him while still keeping my view forward.

"I don't know, sir! We got separated!" He informs me as we get much closer to the building's entrance.

I grunt a little worried as to where my master could be in all this ruckus but I distinctly hear the sounds of a lightsaber tearing through droids and it's not me since all I'm doing is deflecting. Unfortunately, I can't investigate where, not with all these droids around and me needing to cover their retreat. "He'll be fine." He is a Jedi Master for a reason. "We need to get your men back to the barricades now before we're boxed in!"

"That's probably for the best." He agrees with me and after firing over my shoulder at a droid getting too close, he turns around and starts running once we fully make it into the building. "Fall back!" He orders his men and they do as they are told. I turn around and start running too but a particular blaster bolt nearly hits another clones leg, making him trip. I stop cold and quickly grab him before pulling him up to his feet.

"C'mon! Let's go!" I push him behind me and block some more shots before heading deeper into the building with everyone else. One nice thing about droids is their pension for walking pretty slowly while firing at us. Soon the majority of the squad manages get out of the building and back on the road towards the rest of our forces. To my elation, I spot my master safe with Rex's men taking position behind him in various cover. "Master!" I call out and he turns to Rex and I running up to him.

"Mat, great job clearing the way." He compliments me, gesturing to the droid parts around us. I nod but before he can address Rex an explosion happens behind us, forcing us to take cover behind a ruined computer console while he addresses the captain. "Rex, what's our status?" He asks him while the rest of the troops fire into the slowly building smoke towards the building.

"They're right behind us. Most of my unit was able to pull back but we couldn't hold the position long."

"The shield has almost reached the heavy cannons." My master tells us and its true. The shield is getting pretty far against our forces and its only a matter of time before they take them out.

"We're not gonna be able to stop them, sir."

"He's right master. Especially not from here." I add.

"Move your troops back to the heavy cannons. Do everything you can to protect them. Mat go with him and back them up. I'll delay the droids." He tells us the plan. I look at him incredulously.

"What?!"

"But…"

"That is an order, you two!" He states firmly and given his order, Rex goes but to my surprise a B2 jumps over the console to shoot Rex but my master quickly stands up and stabs his lightsaber straight into the droids chest and throws it off. "Go!" He orders me one final time.

I'm hesitant to go, to leave my new master here against all these droids, but he is the master and I am his Padawan. I have to listen to his judgment.

Doesn't mean I have to like it.

I grunt before standing up and moving back. "Be careful sir!" I tell him. He responds with an encouraging smile before igniting his saber and engaging the droids. I turn around and head back to Rex and his troops. "Let's go!" I order as I run past him. "We have to link up with the others!"

"You heard him boys! Move move move!" What remains of Rex's troops fall in and we start heading towards where Cody and the others are. As we come to the entrance back to the main road, the droids are a lot closer now and have a much more concentrated fire against the clones. "What do we do sir?" Rex asks me as we take cover behind some debris. The entire road between us and the rest of our forces is an ascending killzone. We go out now and we're dead.

"Time for some cover." I mutter and ignite my blade. "Go!" I order with a wave to the main force and step out onto the street, using one hand to move the blade faster and block as many blaster bolts towards me. "COVERING FIRE!"

"Covering fire!" I hear Cody yell behind me and the number of blue bolts picks up just a bit, easing the pressure off me and giving Rex and his men the cover needed to go. I back up as I continue to deflect shots and before I know it, I jump back and land behind cover, exhausted but alive. "You alright General?" Cody asks me and I nod as I take deep breaths.

"Yeah. Just tired." I nods to him before I look at Rex. "Your men?"

"We made it sir. Thanks for that."

"No problem." I reply and glance towards the cannons and then the approaching the droids. "Alright Commander! Captain! Top priority is the protection of those heavy cannons. Cody, order your troops to fortify the perimeter around them and keep those droids off them!"

"Yes sir!" He acknowledges the command and goes to gather his men.

"Rex, we're going to be the first line against them! We have to give Cody and his men the time to make that perimeter before we join them. Ready?"

"Ready! Let's scrap 'em!" He shouts and we start fighting back, giving as much time for Cody to do his job. Like usual for the clones and droids battles, it's a massive wall of blue and red blaster bolts that are exchanged between the two sides. The clones take cover and return fire while I stay out in the open and calmly deflect their shots back at the enemy. Thankfully we managed to go past the advancing shield and their heavy vehicles aren't firing on us but it's still a lot of droids that are hammering our position. This goes on for a little bit as we wait for the shield to come down but a clone runner comes up to Rex and I. We go back into cover to listen what he has to say.

"Sirs, General Kenobi's been captured." My breath hitches at the news he gives. _'Capture?! But… no…'_ "You're all that's left sir." He directs the last part to me.

"He's… captured?" I ask in disbelief. The clone gives me a nod and I look down in sadness but that soon turns to determination. "We have to get him back! We have to hold them back!" I state and ignite my blue saber again before stepping out of cover and deflecting all the red bolts that are sent my way. "That shield cannot reach the cannons!" I yell as I deflect some shots back.

"Keep fighting!" Rex says and they pour on the fire against our enemy. Unfortunately though, even with all the firepower we put down range towards the advancing droids, they continue to make their way towards us at a slow, agonizing and deadly pace. Minutes pass but what feels like hours and soon they are coming dangerously close to overrunning us.

"There's too many of them!" I hear a clone yell, making me grunt in frustration at the ground their gaining on us.

Just as one of the droids takes a step over the cover, I shut off my saber and pull both my arms back. "Hraaaa!" I shout while throwing them forward, sending a blast from a force push against their lines. The cover we were using tears off the ground and goes flying back along with the first several lines of the droids. They all crash into each other and a nice pile of debris and droids forms further away from us. "Retreat! Fall back to the cannons!" I order.

"You heard him men! Let's move it!" Rex adds the order and soon our troops move back as well. I turn back to run with them but I don't take more than a few steps before I collapse onto my hands and knees.

"Ahhh." I groan at the tiredness I feel from the exertion I did against the droids. Coupled with how tired I am from the battle so far I'm pretty beat. "No… too tired."

"Hold on General. I got you." A clone comes up to me and quickly helps me to my feet, bringing my arm up and around his shoulder before he helps me walk to the rest of our forces. Some more clones come close and provide covering fire for us as I'm helped to Cody's perimeter line.

"General! Over here!" I spot Rex behind some cover as he waves for us to get to him. We pick up the pace and soon everyone is back in cover and safe. "You alright general?"

"Yeah, I am. Just tired. Give me a minute to rest." I reply in a tired tone. Through my breathing, I look to the clone who may as well have saved my life. "Thank you soldier."

"He, just returning the favor sir." He says and pats my back before picking up his rifle and going to the firing line with the rest of his brothers, leaving me with a confused expression.

"Return the…" I begin to say but now as I think about it I remember the clone I pulled to his feet earlier. "Oh, right." I nod with a smile and take a few more breaths before standing up and laying against the cover. "C'mon Ahsoka. We need you now." I can't help but hope as I glance out to the battlefield in front of us. The droids seem to have no end in sight and with the shield just covering their tanks, the sheer power and devastation they'll bring us is something I never want to see make true. "Hurrrry." I moan, almost begging at this point.

It works.

Right before our eyes, the shimmering red of the shield drops away and completely reveals every single droid and their heavy vehicles to us. To say my heart is soaring would be an understatement. "Captain," I look over to Rex who stares back at me as I give him a wide grin. "Do it."

He nods and turns back to the cannons. "All cannons, fire on those tanks!" Because of the closeness that the droids are along with their tanks, a small shift of their aim downwards so their firing directly at them and it's a scrap heap for the droids. The massive booms of the cannons firing fly over us and start hitting the front of the droids lines and slowly make their way back. I can hear the clones around me cheering as the main part of the droids army and heavy armaments are completely decimated slowly but surely. Without enough room to retreat, their sitting ducks on the long stretch of roads leading very far back.

Their end is even more assured as several LAAT transport gunships fly over us, some firing on the droids but the majority landing behind us in several flat clearings and offloading troops and supplies. Even the giant cruisers that land and start unloading the heavier equipment of the Republic army is a most welcome site indeed. I let out a sigh of relief at the view before turning back to the droids and seeing some stragglers about. _'Now all that's left is to clean up.'_ I think with a smile and ignite my blade.

* * *

"Phew!" Mat breathes relieved as he sits on a crate and takes in a large gulp of water. After mopping up the last of the droids, now everyone can take the moment to relax after a long hard fought battle for this planet. None more so for the clones who've been fighting on the planet before he and Ahsoka got there.

Not far from him is his master as well as Jedi Master Yoda taking stock of the situation and awaiting the arrival of Anakin and his padawan Ahsoka from their mission to destroying the shield generator. The gunship carrying them comes in low and lands to drop off it's passengers.

"Thanks for the ride Rex." Anakin says to the captain before he and Ahsoka walk off.

"Anytime, sir."

"Master Obi-wan. Master Yoda." Anakin greets the two masters with a slight bow, including Ahsoka.

"Hey Mat." She calls out to her friend sitting nearby. He looks up and gives a small wave before drinking more water. "What happened to him?" She asks his master.

"From what he and Cody tell me, a lot of moving and fighting. Just tired is all." Obi-wan explains and glances to his padawan, who gets greeted by some clones who are also taking a break.

"Hmm. Trouble you have with your new padawan, I hear." Yoda says to Anakin. Ahsoka looks down and worried before looking up to her master, who also looks at her before back to Obi-wan.

"I was explaining the situation to Master Yoda."

"Really?"

"If not ready for a padawan you are, then perhaps a new master—"

"No, wait a minute." Yoda begins to say but is cut off by Anakin. "I admit, Ahsoka's a little rough around the edges," She looks worried at the description, "But with a great deal of training and patience, she might amount to something." She smiles at the compliment given by her master.

"Hmm." Yoda nods at the news before looking to Obi-wan. "And what of Matthew, Obi-wan?"

"Nice job back there sir!"

"Yeah you really saved us."

Obi-wan opens his mouth to say something but some clones around Mat can be heard complimenting him. He smiles sheepishly at the compliments as some of pat his back and shoulders. A smile graces Ob-wans face at the positivity that his padawan is getting. "I'd say he's doing very well."

"Mat!" Ahsoka calls out. Him and the clones look to see her waving for him to come to their little Jedi gathering. After downing the last of his water, he jumps off the crate and walks over.

"See you later guys. Good luck out there." He waves back to the clones he's leaving.

"You too sir." They wave back and go to milling about.

"Did you miss me?" Mat asks with a cheeky smile to Ahsoka.

"No." She replies bluntly but they no it's all in good fun.

"To the Teth system, you two will go." Yoda gives Anakin and Ahsoka their next assignment.

"Teth? That's wild space." Anakin says confused. "The droid army isn't even in that sector."

"What reason could there be to go there?" Mat asks aloud.

"Kidnapped Jabba the Hutt's son has been." Yoda grimly clarifies.

"Oh… well that's a pretty big reason."

"You want me to rescue Jabba's son?" Anakin asks in disbelief.

"Anakin, we'll need the Hutt's allegiance to give us an advantage over Dooku." Obi-wan clarifies on why they need to.

"Mmm. Negotiate the treaty with Jabba, Obi-wan will. Find the renegades that hold Jabba's son your mission will be, Skywalker." Yoda gives the assignments to the respective Jedi.

"Come on, Master. It doesn't sound that hard."

"Careful what you say Ahsoka." Mat mumbles but its loud enough for her to hear, making her scowl at him before looking back at her master.

"I'll find Rex and get the troops organized." She finishes and goes off to find him.

"Don't worry, Anakin. Just teach her everything I taught you, and she'll turn out fine." Obi-wan advises his formal pupil.

"You know, something make me think this was your idea from the start." Anakin surmises from his former master before going off to his padawan.

"Well you better go with them Mat." Obi-wan says to his own student.

"Wait, really master? But shouldn't I go with you to treaty?" He asks confused.

"As much as I'd love to take you and show you the proper way to negotiate against a powerful opponent, I think your skills in combat and commanding our troops may be of more use with them wherever they are keeping Jabba's son."

"You think so?"

"I do… unless Cody and the others have been lying?" He asks his padawan with a smile.

"Uhh, no sir they haven't." Mat shakes his head no. "I'll go with Master Skywalker and Ahsoka in finding the hutlet."

"Very good. Besides, my ship only seats one." They look over to the dark red and white starfighter that the Jedi are known fairly well to drive.

"Right." Mat nods at the inconvenience it would be for him to go with his master.

"Don't worry," Obi-wan places a hand on his padawans shoulder. "We'll have plenty of time for me to give you some proper lessons, when we're not dealing with a turning point negotiation for the war."

"I look forward to it Master." He tells his master with a smile and sees a transport landing in front of Anakin and Ahsoka. "I better get going." He says and starts making his way to the others. "Hope the negotiations go well!"

* * *

"Hey wait up!" I call out just as Ahsoka and her master get on the transport. Just as it starts to lift off do I jump onto it right next to them. "Nice. Just in time."

"Mat, what are you doing here?" Ahsoka asks confused, no doubt at my sudden appearance.

"Shouldn't you be with Obi-wan?" Master Skywalker asks as well.

I shake my head no at the question. "My Master thought I could be of more help to you all than him. You are going to be potentially attacking an installation that's housing our objective right?" They nod at that. "Well, my skills in the battle say I can be of better help here than negotiating."

"Oh, that's cool." Ahsoka says and puts a hand on her hip. "I can finally see how you fight now."

"And I can see what Master Skywalker means by 'rough around the edges'." I retort, giving me a chuckle.

"We'll see about that." She smirks.

"Great. Two of them." Her master says slightly annoyed, making us snicker at his misfortune. "In any case, welcome aboard Mat." He formally introduces me on their assignment. "Do try not to die. I'd hate to have to tell Obi-wan why I came back without his Padawan."

I smirk at him and nod. "Can do Master."

* * *

 **I'm quite proud of this. As I said before, this was originally supposed to be with the previous chapter but I was taking too long in writing it out and just decided to split it. Hope the battle was good and I did well with it for you all.**

 **Now to respond to some guest reviews.**

 **DaddyChad:** Wow, only a couple chapters in and already your laying that kind of claim to my work? Thank you so much. Hope his character continues to impress as more develops. As for possibly saving Rex like that, maybe not but I do have ideas for him to possibly save other clones in the future. Sucks how some of them die and maybe just an extra Jedi can make the difference needed.

 **XxGuestxX:** That would definitely suck if that were true. Hopefully as more of this story develops it won't come to that. I make up a good chunk of this as I go. Pretty cool how one of my other stories convinced you to see and read this, thanks. As for my name change, the previous name was just something random I thought up and didn't feel as much of a connection to it as I would have liked. My new one is sort of a mix of the Italian words for avenger and revenge.

 **Also I want to ask a question that I'm most likely going to ask everyone who reads my work. What would you all say to me making a 'Code Lyoko' story?**

 **I'm curious to see what some of you say. Thank you all for the support of this story and I hope things continue to go well in the future. Fave, follow, review, have a great day and as always, have fun reading.**


	4. 3 The Monastery

After the battle that was on Christophisis, I wasn't necessarily expecting to be immediately put on another assignment so soon but at least now I can do it together with my friend. I'm also curious to see just how her and her master get things done. From what I could piece together from their storming of the generator, it's probably going to be a bit hectic.

I think I can get down with that.

In any case, our new mission is to save none other than Jabba The Hutt's son. That honestly wasn't something I was expecting us to do, let alone the Republic but I guess with the way how the wars been going, we could use all the help we could get and I can't think of anyone better than THE Jabba The Hutt. The trip on the giant cruiser we are in has been pretty peaceful as a result but now as we are close to the end of our journey, Ahsoka has decided to… liven up our troops. "That sounds like a lot, even for a Jedi." One of the clones mutters.

"I heard you were surrounded by droids. How did you get the shield down?" Another asks. I'll admit, I'm curious too on how exactly they were able to shut off the shield.

"Okay. So there's a wall behind him with a hole in the middle." Ahsoka begins the tale with hand movements to emphasize. "So I pull the wall down on top of the droids, destroying them and saving the general." She finishes with a grin.

A round of laughs emanate from the clones at the idea of the legendary Anakin Skywalker getting saved in such way I would imagine. A grin also spreads through on my lips at the image. "Is that true, sir?" Rex asks the master.

"Well, most of it." He reluctantly agrees with his student.

"Wow, that sounds like a fun sabotage mission." I can't help but mutter.

"Oh yeah, we'll what did 'you' do while we were saving the day?" Ahsoka asks coming up to me.

"Well, not much to tell. Lots of moving, deflecting red blaster bolts…"

"Saving me and my men." Captain Rex adds with nods from his men from the fight.

"That, and just overall trying not to die."

"Which we all did pretty well thanks to him." Another clone compliments me on.

Master Skywalker smiles at that before taking a more professional stance forward. "All right men, we've still got a job to do." He addresses for them to get ready.

"Yes, sir." Rex replies before turning to his men. "You heard the general. Move it!" With the order given, all our troops depart to get ready for the battle ahead.

"Would this be a good time to teach you that a Jedi is humble, my young Padawan?" Master Skywalker feels the need to firmly remind Ahsoka of that little tidbit as we make our way to the transport ship.

"Sorry. Just trying to trying to keep the boy's inspired, is all." She replies. "Although from what they've said, you did a pretty good job yourself Mat." She points out to me.

"Thanks, Ahsoka. Between the two of us…" I glance at the Master Jedi staring at me, "Uhhh, three—"

"There you go."

"I think the boys will be plenty inspired."

"First off, let's get down there and find the hutlet." Master Skywalker points out and walks ahead of us.

"Right behind you, Master." Ahsoka replies before waving me forward. "C'mon, Mat."

"You got it."

* * *

The standard troop transport gunships we are riding in definitely aren't the smoothest rides but they always fascinated me with their designs. The main guns up front, laser guns on the side, open blast shield doors on both sides and can carry over a dozen troops, not to mention they can be converted to carrying the giant walker tanks we are bringing with us for this engagement, I.E. The AT-TE's.

"Mat, your staring."

"Sorry." I apologize to my friend and step away from the slit hole in the door that gave me a good view of the tank in transport. We're heading to the planet now where our scouts told us where our target is and from the report they gave, it's defended by a platoon of droids and heavy artillery.

A hologram of my master appears in the middle of our transport to give us a rundown of what needs to be done. "All right, Anakin, here's the story. Jabba has given us only one planetary rotation to get his son back home to Tatooine safe and sound."

"Won't take us that long, Master." Master Skywalker boasts but my master doesn't feel as confident.

"Well, take extreme care. We have no idea who's holding Jabba's son. When I finish negotiations with him, I will join you."

"Can do, Master."

My master nods before turning to me. "Take care. May the force be with you." I nod back and the transmission cuts out. Disappointed I won't be directly fighting alongside my master in this battle but hopefully after we take this place will I be able to.

We delve into a bit of silence with only the sound of our flying ships being the noise we here. "Stay close to me, if you can." Master Skywalker instructs Ahsoka and I.

"It won't be a problem, Master." Ahsoka replies confidently.

"This isn't practice, Ahsoka." He warns her.

"I know. And I'll try not to get you killed." She tells him with a smug smile, in which he returns with one his own. "Same with you Mat."

"I feel soooo relieved." I sarcastically reply. Before anymore can be said, loud booms and rumblings can be heard outside of our craft. "Sounds like we're close."

"Sir, we're taking heavy fire." The pilot informs us.

"Close the blast shields, lieutenant. Get us under those guns." Master Skywalker orders our pilot.

"Yes, sir!" Order given, he flips the switch and the opening I used before to watch outside close shut, bathing us in darkness almost instantly.

"Here we go."

"Let's do this." Ahsoka and I begin to psyche ourselves up for the battle.

Soon a red light illuminates the darkness, signaling the clones themselves to begin getting ready. "Rex, your com's got static."

"Got it."

"Red light, stand by." The rapport of their DC-15A blaster rifles getting ready can be heard around amidst the artillery fire. I can feel the ship starting to descend so it must be time for us to this show started. "Welcome to paradise, rock jumpers."

With a thud, we hit the ground finally and the red light is replaced by a green one. "Green light." Rex signals and the doors open. The sound of artillery fire and laser blasts become even louder without anything between us now. "Go, go, go!" Rex orders and both he and Master Skywalker disembark.

Ahsoka and I do the same, our cloaks flying off as we start to push our way into an uphill battle. Clones move, shout and return fire around us as the battle begins. We stop at a small clearing in the tree line as we can finally see the monastery building where we need to attack. "Mm!" I grunt as both Ahsoka and I shield ourselves with our arms from a blast in front of us. Unperturbed, we nod at each other and ignite our lightsabers. "Incoming." I mutter to us both and we easily deflect some shots away from us, some even hitting back despite the distance. "Let's go!" I shout and move forward.

"Right behind you!" We push forward as quickly we can towards the cliff face, passing clones who return fire as well as the AT-TE's that lumber towards it.

"Follow me!" Master Skywalker orders everyone one us to do.

"Let's go!"

"Come on!" Shouts of acknowledgements can be heard as we run low along the ground where we need to go. Thankfully we aren't hit as we all push ourselves, Jedi and clone alike, against the rock wall for cover and make ourselves as little a target as trouble.

We take a moment to ready ourselves and give the walkers time to make it to the cliff so we can all start scaling it. "Ah! Oh, my…!" A droids body falls and slams hard into the ground in front of us. Before it can get up I think a binocular fell on it. _'Huh, must have been shot off.'_

"So this is where the fun begins." Ahsoka says.

"Race you to the top."

"I'll give you a head start."

"Your mistake."

"Attach the cables!" Despite the gravity the of the situation, and it proves just how much of a perfect match they are as teacher and student, they challenge each other as the clones shoot the ascension cables on their blaster rifles.

As we all run out from behind our cover, Master Skywalker instead opts to climb the vines growing in the side of the rock wall. "I'm right behind you, Master!" She announces to her to master before looking at me with a smile. "Last one there…" She doesn't bother to finish as she jumps up and begins climbing as well.

I can't help but shake my head at their actions but the smile that forms on my own lips doesn't dissuade me joining in. I focus for a second before I launch myself much higher into the air using the force, sailing past Ahsoka and grabbing the vine she was using. Once I grab a firm hold of it vine, I look down and see the surprised look on her face before I smile back and begin climbing. _'Oh yeah. I can get behind this.'_ I think as I start climbing my way up as best I can. Already Master Skywalker has got a considerable lead on us as he climbs with one hand and deflects blaster bolts with his lightsaber. "Show off." Without him actually being here, I can voice my thoughts. He's definitely a… unique teacher to say the least and this'll be interesting.

A sudden explosion goes off far to my right. Looking, I see it's one of our walkers was just scrapped and is falling to the ground, taking some of our troops with us. "That's… not good." We're going to need those tanks if we're going to take this place and ensure we have a foothold. Something on one of them catches my eye and I smirk as I see Ahsoka hitching a ride on one of them, "Clever." I can't help but agree with her actions as I too swing myself over and latch on the walker with her. "Hey, this ride taken?"

"Only if you can hold on." She smugly replies and we begin climbing up to the top. Past us much higher, I spot Master Skywalker still way ahead of us, and chop a falling B2 in half. We duck as the droid moans as it falls past us. Taking a quick look around, we lost all our other AT-TE's. This is the last one. The droids have climbing capable DSD1 dwarf spider droids on the rock wall itself and are able to shoot directly at us, taking most of troops out with ease. Their blaster cannons are much more powerful than the standard droids E-5 blaster rifles but can be deflected nonetheless by lightsabers.

"Arhhh!" Unfortunately, that proves useless to clone armor as a flurry of blaster shots fly past us and one nails the gunner of the tank.

With the battle picking up, Ahsoka and I share a glance, nod and we get ready to defend our ride. She launches herself up and lands on the pilots window to defend it directly while I drop back and latch onto the gunners seat. Climbing in, I quickly familiarize myself with the controls. "I knew reading up on this would come in handy." I comment as I grab the controls and bring the cannons aim to bare on any targets I can see. Usually the clone gunner would link their helmet in with the cannons aim reticule and have a much easier time in aiming but since I have no helmet, I have to rely on manual aiming. Seeing the monasteries ledge high above us, I only have to aim a little before I fire.

The gun jerks hard with me along with it from the force of the blast but the explosion that goes off and the rain of a few droids leads me to think it was a success. I fire a few more shots as Ahsoka's green lightsaber flares up and begins deflecting shots away from us while I provide return fire on our enemies. The combination of heavy blaster fire from the four main guns on the walker, the accurate fire of my cannon, and Ahsoka's defense do we manage to wreak havoc on the droids and protect our own.

"Mat!" I hear Ahsoka call out and points to our left. A small squad of four droids in STAP speeder bikes head straight for us. They strafe the cliff along towards us before they straighten out and prepare to more accurately fire at us. Shifting my controls, I feel a bit of vertigo as my whole body reorients along with the gun as I turn it to the left. Before they fire, I fire.

The cannon shot sails through the air and nails one right in the center, the force of it taking out another as well, leaving only two. I can't get another shot off in time before they open fire on us. Thankfully most of their shots go wide and others are deflected by Ahsoka while only one hits the side of the walker. They're blasters aren't powerful enough to tear through its armor and only jostle the thing. "Whoa!" Unfortunately, that was all that was needed to throw me off my seat. Since I was sideways, the shaking has slipped me off my seat and I find myself dangling off the edge of my gunner seat. As a reaction I find myself staring downwards to the ground and I immediately regret it. "Ahsoka!" I call out her name.

"Mat! Hold on!" Ahsoka comes to my rescue as she jumps down from the top and lands on the turret. "I got you." She extends her hand out and I grab it with my right. She begins to pull me up but a familiar sound makes me look back. The last of the droids bikes come around straight for us.

"Watch out!" I pull myself up and place my free hand on her shoulder before pushing her to the right. I'm pushed back as well onto the barrel of the gun as their blasters riddle where we just were. Before we can do anything else however, Master Skywalker decided to help us out as he lands on top of the walker and kicks himself off towards the flying bikes. As he passes the first one, he slices the droid right off before landing on the last one. After chopping that one off, he decides instead to commandeer it and use it to fly upwards.

"Gotta keep up!"

"Hey! No fair!"

"Oh great! You two really are the perfect pair." I comment as I push myself back into my seat.

"Just keep us covered!" She replies annoyed and goes back to her spot up top.

Shaking my head, I reorient the turret forward and fire at the spider droids.

* * *

Using the STAP to get far ahead of everyone else and make it to the top, he surprises the droids as he hits the top and jumps off just as his ride gets hit. Using the force, he lands past the droids in a rolled crouched position.

"Surrender, Jedi." The captain droid demands of Anakin to do. Before they can fire, he lights his weapon up. "Ahhhhhh!" The captain yells as a force blast pushes him and several of his troops off the edge to their doom. Anakin next speeds and jumps around as he chops slices and cuts through the other droids with ease until he finds himself in front of the courtyard entrance to the monastery. Once the last droid is destroyed, he takes a moment to breathe but the haunting sound of a Droideka traveling puts him on edge. Looking up he sees no more than three Destroyers heading straight for him before they stops, uncurl and their shields go up. He grimaces at the odds stake against him without any backup.

"Blast it, Ahsoka. I told you to stay close to me." He comments out loud.

*PEERR*

The cannon shot of a AT-TE walker sails through the air and hits the Droideka. Their small shields can do absolutely nothing to stop all three of them from being blown to bits from the powerful cannon blast. He turns around to see their only AT-TE walker here with his padawan standing right next to the gunner's barrel. "I can't get much closer, Skyguy." She replies as she crosses her arms.

"I knew you'd get here, Snips, eventually."

"Always in time to save your life."

"Eh-hem." They both turn to Mat leaning out of the gunner seat. "Uhhh, I believe IIII was the one that destroyed the droids, thank you very much." He points out as he pulls himself out.

"Yeah, you were. We can make a habit of saving Master Skywalkers life." Ahsoka proposes as they both jump down from the top.

"Let's not, thank you very much." Anakin has reservations about that but they simply smile as everyone begins gathering around, including their clone troops once all the droids were destroyed.

"All clear, general." Rex gives the status on the area.

"Nice work, Rex. Have some men look after the wounded."

"Roger that, sir. Gunships are holding at a safe distance. Once we get what we came for, they'll come in to extract us."

"Good. We'll need them for a speedy getaway." Mat comments as they make their way to some of the destroyed droids. "Lot of droids."

"You're right. Too many droids here for them to be renegades. I sense Count Dooku's hand in this. Let's find Jabba's son and get out of here."

"No problem. The hard part's over." Ahsoka confidently says.

"Please don't say that. Things never go right when people say that." Mat says in disdain.

"I gotta agree with him there." Anakin agrees with the padawan before leading everyone forward. Ahsoka looks miffed at that but nonetheless she, her master, friend, Rex and the clones troops begin making their way inside the main courtyard towards the entrance.

"Eyes up. Watch out for snipers." Mat orders as he glances around him upwards.

"Roger that." Rex acknowledges and the soldiers keep their aims trained up.

"You think they'd try something like that?" Ahsoka asks.

"These pillars don't really offer much cover and protection so if there was any spot to put us in a crossfire, this would be it." Mat explains before glancing all around. "Besides, I keep getting the feeling we're being watched."

"You're just paranoid." She brushes off his suspicions but he disagrees.

"Better paranoid and prepared than caught off-guard and unprepared." He reasons as they make it to the main steel door of the facility. "Alright, we're here. I'll get the door." He walks over to the door controls on the side of the giant door and opens it easily enough. With the sound of creaking metal, the door opens up easy enough. Already the inside is bathed in darkness, forcing Rex and his men to turn on the flashlights embedded in their helmets.

"I don't like this place. It gives me the creeps."

"With you there, Captain." Mat agrees as they continue to walk in regardless.

"This looks like one of those B'omar monk monasteries that I read about in my studies at the temple. Remember Mat?" Ahsoka explains and asks her friend.

"Wasn't a massive history buff myself, prefer the current modern age equipment myself, but yeah I remember these. Weren't they "

"They were. Shame this place looks abandoned."

"Not all of them usually." Anakin speaks, "Smugglers take these monasteries over, turn them into their own personal retreats." He explains.

"And the monks just let them?" She asks confused.

"Smugglers usually get what they want, one way or another." He grimly explains.

"And at times, the monks aren't around anymore to argue." I add. When it comes to those of the lawless nature that are smugglers or pirates, they aren't usually the negotiating or compromising types.

"That's right." A crashing noise can be heard deeper in suddenly. Clones pull up their weapons and Anakin readies his sabers while Ahsoka and Mat tense up as they prepare for possible hostiles.

The clones flashlights shine on a droid that makes its way to them. "Uh, good guy or bad guy, Master?" Ahsoka asks him unsure.

"Who are you?" Anakin demands strongly but Mat seems to relax a bit.

"Relax, it looks like a protocol droid. No harm from it." He whispers to the two them and while Ahsoka relaxes, Anakin is still wary.

The droid continues to make its way to them despite the slight threatening tone that was exhibited on it. "Merely the humble caretaker, oh mighty sir." He explains before continuing, "You have liberated me from those dreadful battle bots. I am most thankful." Without seeing any outwards hostilities from the new arrival, Skywalker turns off his weapon but still wants to get the mission underway quickly.

"Where is the Hutt?" He questions firmly.

"The battle bots kept their prisoners on the detention level. I must warn you, it is very dangerous down there, my friend. Not a place for a servant girl." The droid says, directing the last part to their only female member.

"Do servant girls carry these?!" Ahsoka, insulted at the idea of being someone like that, turns her saber on and threatens the droid with the tip of the blade. "I am a Jedi Knight." She firmly states what she is, even though she's sort of wrong on the title. After that little comment, she glances to see her master giving her a look. "Or soon will be."

"A thousand apologies, young one." The droids apologizes as Ahsoka walks forward with Mat coming up behind her.

"Pch!" She glances back to see Mat with his lips pursed tightly closed, almost like he's suppressing a laugh. "Servant girl…" He mutters.

"I. Will hit you." She crossly states at her friend, in which he holds his hands up in a surrendering gesture but the smile doesn't leave his face.

"C'mon you two, let's get going before you kill each other." Anakin comes up and passes them. This breaks Ahsoka of her death stare at Mat, who in turn doesn't feel like laughing anymore as they walk to keep up with their Master. Ahsoka does though keep glancing at Mat to make sure he doesn't make any more comments at her… confused position.

* * *

The three Jedi go through the building with relative ease after being directed where they needed to go by the caretaker droid and it isn't long before they make it to the dungeons where hopefully their Hutt charge is being kept.

The place is kept in relative darkness and while Anakin is calm and cool about the place, the padawans aren't. "Master, you know you're walking us into a trap?" Ahsoka points out.

"I know." Is her masters reply.

"You realize we passed several droids already?" Mat adds.

"I know."

"We just passed two more droids."

"I know."

"Well I don't like this. Can we just take care of them?" Ahsoka proposes she and her fellow padawan learner do.

"Oh, well, if you two feel so strongly about it, go ahead." He finally gives the go ahead after the droids finally come out of their hiding place and trail them. Glancing at each other, they nod and both ignite their lightsabers. Several blaster bolts try to hit them but they deflect the shots easy enough. Ahsoka moves closer and starts slashing apart the droids weapons, then the droids, while Mat stays close to Skywalker and deflects some shots back, destroying a few of the droids themselves. Just as soon as the droids were there, they are reduced to scrap in a matter of seconds. Once the last one is destroyed, they take a second to breathe but Mat glances back and curls around the stoic Master and slashes a droid hiding behind the corner. After taking a quick look around, they both holster their weapons. "Not bad. You remembered to destroy their weapons first." Anakin comments to his padawan.

"I'm improving your technique." She replies.

He smiles and begins walking away. "Of course, you did miss one." He says as he pats Mat's shoulder. "Nice job."

"Thank you, Master." He takes the compliment.

"I knew he'd get that one." She states confidently but somehow, they aren't convinced.

Not long later, while all the cell doors seem to be open, they come across a door that's closed. "I sense our kidnapped Hutt is in here." Anakin points out but the others have a different means of determining that.

Mat takes a small breath but that alone makes him gag a little. "Oh wow, sounds about right."

"Ewww." Ahsoka groans as she tries to plug her nose. "Yeah, I can smell him too."

Bracing themselves, they open the door and look around for the Hutt that's supposed to be here. However as soon as they don't see him, this raises questions. "Wait, where is h—?" Mat begins to ask but a small wailing sound makes them look down. On the ground crawling, the smallest Hutt they've ever seen crawls towards them. "Oh… huh."

"He's a lot younger than I thought he'd be." Anakin says and it's true considering his size. While most Hutts are known for their relatively large sizes and statures, this one in front of them doesn't even make it to their knees.

"Ah, he's just a baby." Ahsoka coos at the little guy and Mat begins to feel the same way now that the surprise has passed. "This will make our job a lot easier." True to what she means, at least now they don't have to worry about going at Hutt's pace and can simply carry the little guy. "Oh, he's so cute."

"Just wait till you see what he'll grow into."

"Let's focus on the now, Master, rather than what he'll EVENTUALLY be." Mat proposes and crouches next to the little Hutt with Ahsoka. "Hey little guy. We're going to get you out of here, okay?"

"General Skywalker, the castle is secure." Anakins comlink chimes up with Rex reporting in. "And it's nearly midday."

"Thanks, Rex. We've got Jabba's son. Any sign of General Kenobi yet?"

"No, sir." Mat perks up at the mention of his master but looks down at the lack of info. _'Hope he gets here soon. I don't think we can take any chances now that we have this little guy with us.'_ Mat thinks before looking at Ahsoka.

"Master, my Jedi training didn't prepare me for this." She says to her master and gesturing to the Huttlet. "What are we gonna do?"

"Well, since you two think that smelly larva is cute, you're gonna carry it." He states before walking out of the room.

Both padawan look at each other before looking down at the little fussy Hutlet. "Not it."

"I hate you." Ahsoka says after Mat speaks first.

"Hate is not an emotion used by the Jedi my young Ahsoka. It is through the Jedi way that we must—"

"Shut it." She grumbles as she walks out of the room with Jabba's son in her arms.

"Hehehe." He chuckles and follows after.

* * *

Finding Jabba's son was relatively easy at this point after taking the place for ourselves. Finding out he's not massively big that most Hutt's are known for made our jobs so much easier now that we can literally carry him along. Hopefully now as long as nothing else comes up we can simply get him on the cruiser, jump to Tatooine and drop him off without much of a fuss.

Why do I get the feeling it's not going to be that easy.

We travel back through the building until we make it back to the main entrance we can in from. In the courtyard the troops were able to get the AT-TE set up to defend us should we get attacked and it looks like that R2 droid was able to pilot Master Sywalkers ship here for us. Even though Ahsoka was still a little annoyed at my quick words, I kept pace with her to make sure everything was good while her master opted to continue just a bit ahead of us.

"How do you like you little buddy now?" Master Skywalker asks with I'm pretty sure a hint of smugness to Ahsoka. "Still cute?"

"No. He's reminding me of you more and more." She holds the little guy up as emphasis. I lean in and inspect him closely.

"Such uncanny resemblance." I mutter quietly in fake awe.

"See? You're two of a kind."

"Maybe you should carry both of us then." He says and begins walking to the clones.

We both look back at our charge who continues to fuss a little, although that changes when he begins coughing. "Master, I think this little guy is sick." She says.

I place my hand on his forehead gently and find it incredibly warm. "She's right. He's burning up like crazy. And from the conditions they had him in, I'm not surprised."

Master Skywalker comes over and does the same as me. "This isn't good. We've got to get him back to the ship immediately." He states with certainty. "Trooper, get me a backpack." With no time at all, a trooper brings us a spare empty backpack for us to use. Crouching down we begin to try to place him inside the pack but he begins wailing and crying at the man-handling.

"Will you just let me do it." Ahsoka says after her master seems just a little too rough with our charge.

"I hate Hutts." He grumbles.

"We get it, Master. Just… let me. C'mere little guy." I grab him gently as I can and carefully slide him into the pack until he's comfortable. "There we go. Just hold on a little longer and we'll get you back to your father, alright?" I try to comfort him as best I can. He smiles at that and is no longer crying as much but then cough a little. "We really need to go." I say to Master Skywalker.

"Don't have to tell me." He says as he stands up. I grab the bag and hoist it as well.

"Sir, General Kenobi made to the cruiser. He's requesting you with the ship." A trooper comes by and directs Master Skywalker to the ship that's parked.

"Thank you, trooper. C'mon you two. Let's fill him in on the situation."

"Right behind you, Master." Ahsoka agrees and we follow to the ship. As soon as we get close enough, R2 connects the holocommunicator with us and my masters form appears.

"Greetings Master." Master Skywalker greets him immediately.

"Hello, Anakin. I take it things are going well?" My master asks.

"Well as can be. We cleared the place out and have set ourselves up for the time being."

"That's good." My master takes note and looks to me. "Hello Matthew. I'm glad to see you're unharmed."

I smile and return with a nod. "Good to see you again, Master. The assault was a success. It was rough at first but we were able to make do in the end."

"That's comforting." It's then he notices the Huttlet in my arms. "So you were able to locate Jabba's son." My master points out.

"We have him, but it looks like the Separatists are behind his abduction. This smells like Count Dooku to me." Ahsoka

"I think it's little stinky you smell." Ahsoka proposes from her spot between us. Now that she mentions it, I haven't really been put off by the little guys smell now. _'I think I may be getting used to him.'_

"I'll bet Dooku is using us to get Jabba to join the Separatists." My master surmises and that's a daunting thought to think about. _'We're already stretched thin as it is on this war. The Hutts joining the Separatists would no doubt end us completely.'_

"We can't let that happen." I mutter but the little Huttlets fidgeting brings up another problem. "Unfortunately, Master. We have another problem." I speak up, bring the sickness into question.

"He's right. This Huttlet is very sick." She gestures to the Huttlet in my arms.

"Not sure we can get him back to Tatooine alive, Master. This whole rescue may backfire on us. I still don't think dealing with the Hutts is a good idea." Master Skywalker grimly says and voices his displeasure of the Hutts again.

"Anakin, you know they control shipping routes in the Outer Rim. Jabba's cooperation is crucial to the war effort. If you let anything happen to his son, our chances of a treaty with him will disappear." My master explains the importance of this assignment is to us and everyone else in this war.

Before anymore can be said, the sound of ships flying overhead gets our attention. What just dropped out of hyperspace makes my stomach drop as two Separatist C-9979 landing craft are seen above and begin their descent. "Master, we've got trouble." Ahsoka worriedly says as Vulture droid starfighters begin speeding towards us.

"Defensive positions!" Rex calls out to his troops.

"Anakin? Mat?"

"Droid landing crafts incoming." I explain to my master quickly.

"I'll have to call you back, Master! We're under attack. We could use a little help here if you have the time." Master Skywalker requests of Master Kenobi.

"I'll get there as soon as I can. Protect the Hutt, Anakin. Becareful Mat." My master gives one last sentence before the transmission cuts off.

We look back up to the sky and the vultures are very close now, escorting the landing craft as it too begins to drop the droid ground troops. "Watch it!" Ahsoka warns as both she and Master Skywalker ignite their blades and cover me as some of their blaster shots come close to hitting me. I turn around and show my back to the droids, covering the Huttlet as much as I can.

We move back as the blaster fire intensifies with my fellow Jedi covering me all the way until we get to the AT-TE. The clones start to move in and engage the droids but that ship can carry ten times over the amount of troops we have here. Master Skywalkers ship is destroyed in the strafing fire from Vultures but thankfully R2 ejects out of it before he too is destroyed. Through the blaster fire all around us, I spot a black cloaked figure near where the droids are getting out from the ship but I can make them out. "Get inside! Ahsoka, cover them!" Master Skywalker orders us to do.

"Let's go you two!" Ahsoka confirms the order and sticks with me. Not wanting our charge to get killed so easily, I hold him in front of me as I make my way towards the monastery. I move past the slowly moving walker, using its massive size and legs to shield me, while also not getting stepped on in the process. Just as we make it out from under the walking tank, the machine explodes and is swiftly taken out by the sheer volley fire thrown against it. Thankfully we make it into the doorway without trouble. Taking cover behind a side wall, Ahsoka is just outside the door, covering the clones as they begin retreating inside.

The Huttlet begins to fuss and cry some more in my arms. I take him out of the backpack and sling it over my shoulders. "Shhhh shh shh shh it's okay it's okay." I lightly shush and rock him a little. "We're safe in here. No one's going to hurt you." I comfort him as best I can given our spot. That seems to settle him enough to calm him down, making me sigh in relief. Looking back out, everyone has made it in and the doors rapidly begin to close. I'm worried for a second as I see Master Skywalker still outside but at the last second he tucks and rolls right under the door inside. With blaster shots no longer being fired at us, I come out from my hiding spot and everyone else breathes a sigh of relief. "You guys okay?" I ask my fellow Jedi.

"Yeah, we're good." Ahsoka answers tiredly but overall is alright. Her master goes over to Captain Rex.

"Captain, we'll stay here until General Kenobi arrives with reinforcements." He gives the captain his order but as he turns back to Ahsoka and I, he sees us giving him a look. "What?" _'Problem with that order, is the fact that we can wait until my master saves us, the Huttlet in my arms however can't.'_

"Master, do you honestly think we can hold them off?" She asks her master and that's another problem. _'Only a matter of time before they get that door open and when they do, it'll be a massacre. If we still had the tank we might have had a chance but that thing was torn apart pretty quick.'_ "We've got to find a way out of here." She demands we do and I'm inclined to agree but her master isn't onboard.

"Our mandate is to protect this Hutt. That's what we're going to do, Ahsoka."

"With all due respect, Master," I chime in now, "Our mission above all else is to get this Hutt back to Tatooine alive, and with the fever he's running, we can't afford to wait." I remind him on the Huttlets condition. He was burning up before but now simply holding him I can sort of feel how sick he is.

"Then I suppose you two have a plan." On that question he asks, I'm kind of stumped on it but R2 beeping gives Ahsoka an idea.

"Yes. Or I think so. R2 willing." Whatever plan she's got, hopefully it's alot better than standing around here.

"All right, snips, I'll trust on this one." He gives the go ahead and I sigh in relief and she smiles. "Captain, hold them here as you can." He gives a final order to the troops before he begins walking away.

"Will do, sir."

"Give 'em hell, Rex." I say to the troops before following the others.

"Thank you, sir. You heard the general! Get ready to turn those clankers into scrap metal!" Rex orders his troops and they begin getting into cover. I don't like the idea of leaving them alone to fend off the droids, but this Huttlet takes top priority.

We push further into the building, thankfully with less ambushing droids this time and putting the Huttlet back in his backpack, until after a long while of searching through different rooms, we finally manage to come across a control terminal that has a plug-in for the astromech droid. "If there's a way out of here, Artooey will find it." Ahsoka places her confidence in the droid and hopefully he does find a way out. Would really suck if the only way out was the through the front. R2 moves forward and begins splicing into the terminal.

"Make it quick." Master Skywalker voices his impatience a little. R2 beeps but I can't make out what he says. If I had to guess, it may be something along the lines of 'be patient'… or something not suited for someone as young as Jabba's son. Either way, he gets to work figuring out where we need to go.

"Finally asleep, huh?"

"Hm?" I question at what Master Skywalker means but the soft snoring behind me reminds me of who he's talking about. "Oh, yeah. Looks like it."

"Put him down." I go ahead do as he says and gently put the little guy down so he doesn't wake up. "Get some rest yourselves you two. It's been a long day for you little ones." Not really annoyed at the little one comment but I do decide to sit down.

"I'm fine, Master. I'm not tired." Ahsoka stubbornly states as she remains standing. Apparently she wasn't as cool with the comment as I was.

"Okay, suit yourself. I don't see why you just won't listen to me." He mutters at her actions.

"I do listen to you, Master. I just don't like being treated like a youngling." She reasons for her stubbornness.

"You must have patience. What are you trying to prove anyway?" He asks her.

"That I'm not too young to be your Padawan." She reveals why. I get where she's going with this. Before we were offered this chance to become padawans, some others weren't really on board with the idea and that lead to the two of us being pushed back in getting our masters for a bit. She was not fond of that whatsoever while I simply took the extra time to study up on whatever weapons and equipment I may use in the future. Because of the severity of the war that was taking place, we were finally cleared to be given our new masters but others still see us as being too young to be proper padawans. I don't care what others basically think on that, my actions will speak for themselves in time, or have already. Ahsoka still prefers to prove them wrong sooner rather than later.

"Ahsoka," Master Skywalker gets up and places a hand on the shoulder of my sad friend. "A very wise Jedi once said, 'Nothing happens by accident.' It's the will of the Force that you're at my side. Just wanna keep you there in one piece." He finishes saying, finally able to get her to relax. "Both of you." He adds and turns to me. I smile at the inclusion and nod to him. Ahsoka finally sits down and relaxes now. "What about you Mat? You have something to prove like her?" He asks me but I shake my head no.

"Not really. I am happy to here and finally doing what I can to make a difference in this war, but I'll let my actions and achievements contradict anyone who says I'm too young or shouldn't be a Padawan." I give him my explanation.

"That's good. And if what you did back in that first battle is anything to go by, you'll prove a lot of people wrong." Master Skywalker supports it.

"Thank you, Master."

However before we can speak anymore, an explosion shakes the entire building, putting us all on edge and on our feet immediately. "That sounded bad." Master Skywalker points out the obvious.

R2 chirps something but before we can inquire what's got him so excited, he pulls out a hologram of the monastery and highlights one particular spot in red.

"A backdoor landing platform." Ahsoka identifies what it is immediately.

"Perfect." I breath in relief. _'Good thing we won't have to go out the front. Although from that explosion, I'm now worried about our men.'_

"We'll call for a gunship when we get there. Lead the way, R2." Complying, the little droid disconnects himself and heads to the door.

"Alright let's get out of here." I crouch down to grab the backpack carrying Jabba's son but I notice it tipped over, and missing one Huttlet. "Uh, guys, we may have a problem." I say to them and they look to see the problem.

"Wait, where's Stinky?" Master Skywalker asks as he takes a closer look at the backpack. _'Seriously, that's his name now?'_

"You told us to put him down!" Ahsoka retorts.

"Find him." Master Skywalker orders we do but thankfully we don't have to look far. The same noise that the little guy makes can be heard and we look under where we were sitting. There he is lo and behold trying to crawl away. "Come out of there, you grubby little slug." He begins pulling him out and he starts crying a bit more but nothing too serious. Now that we have him we begin putting him back in his spot in the backpack. Ahsoka pulls it on her while her master and I slip him in. Thankfully he doesn't about with it and coos once he's settled. "Let's see you get away this time." He challenges the little guy.

"Anakin, come in."

"Anakin?"

"What?" Ahsoka and I are confused at the first name basis that Rex seems to put Master Skywalker in over the comms.

"We've held the droids, sir." Rex on the continues but I have a bad feeling about it.

"That's not like Rex." Master Skywalker surmises and from the brief time I spent with him, it does not sound like him to do.

"What is your location?"

"Ventress." The way how he speaks the name sends shivers down my spine.

"Who?" I ask confused.

"Dooku's assassin?" Ahsoka asks a clearer question.

"She's here to kill the Hutt. Come on." Master Skywalker explains before he begins walking away.

"Wait, Master, what about Captain Rex?" I ask in concern. "If your right about this Ventress, then he's in trouble. Can't we do something to help?"

"I'm afraid we can't. If they are in trouble, and if Ventress is there, then she'll do everything she can to kill Stinky here." He pats the little guy on the head, who fusses a little and waves his arms but calms down soon after. "Going back with him is out of the question. That landing platform is the only other option we have." He explains the reason as to why we can't go.

' _At least, the Huttlet can't go.'_ I think for a second as he begins walking out with the others. "Wait!" I run out and catch him in the halls. "What if I just go?" I propose instead. He and Ahsoka look at me incredulously at my idea. "Here me out," I interrupt any form of argument they may have. "If the only two entrances in this entire place that can support gunship transport is the front door, and that backdoor landing pad, then if Ventress is as smart as you think she is…"

"She is." He confirms.

"Then chances are she might have left something to defend that platform. If we get cut off there, then we'll need backup in getting out the front until my Master arrives with help and Rex and his men are the only other help we got." I explain my reasoning. I don't like the idea of leaving men like that to cover our retreat and if I can do something to help them, I will.

I manage to give Master Skywalker pause as he seems to think on it. "He does have a point Master." Thankfully Ahsoka speaks. "If we get stuck on that platform without a way out, then Stinky's as good as gone. Besides, from what he and the clones said he did back on Christophisis, the least he can do is confirm what's going on with Captain Rex." She supports, although a little differently, on my plan.

Master Skywalker looks between the two of us, conflicted on what to do but the reasoning we give him wins out as he sighs finally before conceding. "Alright. You can go." I smile. "But only to scout out the entrance!" He adds real quickly. "See if you can figure out what's going on over there and once you do, you contact us and tell us what's going on, got it?" He tells my condition for me to leave.

"I got it, Master." I agree with a nod as well and turn to head back.

"Hey." Someone grabs my hand, forcing me to stop. Turning back, I see it's Ahsoka. She's giving me a worried expression. "Be careful, alright. I don't want to go through this war without my friend." She says.

With a smile, I pat her hand as she lets me go. "Don't worry, I have no intention of dying today. I'll be cautious." I begin making my way back down the way we originally came by. "See you when we're done." I call back one final time before I start sprinting my way towards the entrance. _'I got this… I got this… You got this Mat.'_ If Ventress was able to force Rex into trying to make Master Skywalker give up our location, then she's a force user. A Sith. This'll be the first time I face another force user and I'll be severely outclassed if I meet her. _'Be silent, Mat.'_

* * *

"Ahsoka, you've known Mat the longest. You think he's got this?" Anakin asks his padawan as they continue to make their way through the building towards where the landing platform is, following R2 all the way.

Ahsoka looks at her master before looking forward again, this time in thought. Out of all the things that Mat prided himself in when he was training, it was always his skill with a lightsaber and his knowledge of weapons. From blaster bolt deflection to going toe to toe with another lightsaber user was his main focus. If anyone could take on those droids along with possibly surviving Ventress, then he can. "I do, Master."

* * *

It isn't hard for me to backtrack my way back to the main entrance. I was able to remember fairly well the jist of it when we were looking for that terminal and now I'm making good time as the familiar surroundings get me closer and closer to where I need to go.

*SMACK*

"Crah!" I grunt loudly in pain as the air suddenly leaves my lungs. I crumple to the floor as I struggle to breathe and my vision goes a little hazy from the sudden blindside.

"My my, what do we have here?" A new voice can be heard but the way it speaks sends the same shiver down my spine when Master Skywalker called the name of—

"Oof!" I grunt again as someone kicks me in the stomach, dazing me even further as I curl up a little from the pain.

"What's this? A Jedi?" My eyes shoot open as I go for my belt and find my lightsaber but I find it missing. My vision begins to return as I look up and see Ventress finally. The voice definitely goes with the person as she examines my lightsaber from different angles. I give her a cross angered stare as she takes my personal weapon from but she definitely doesn't look like she cares. "Grievous is the one that usually takes these as trophy's… but from that pitiful display right now, I feel like you really don't deserve this." She explains before she clips it to her own belt. I remain silent as she does so but my stare doesn't waver the least bit, especially when I hear metallic footsteps around me. "I'd love to stay and chat, and maybe find out who you are, but I got a slug to kill." With a wave of her hand, I suddenly find myself both lifted up and my airway cut off as she chokes me onto my feet. Thankfully she doesn't do it for long before she lets me go and I can breathe again. "Take him to the rest of the prisoners."

"Yes, mistress." One of the droids complies with her orders and sticks his gun against my back, indicating for me to move with another one following.

"Have fun." She pats my cheek with her cold hand but I jerk my head away from her. She only chuckle at the action before heading deeper into the complex a squad of droids and droiekas with her, along with my lightsaber.

"Damn." I curse at my lack of caution once I'm out of earshot of her. I was banking on the idea of her still being with the others at the entrance, not already on her way to find us. Otherwise I would have found another route, but now it's too late. I'm being led to where their keeping their prisoners since I am now one. _'This… is not good.'_

* * *

 **I was debating whether to end it after Mat leaves Ahsoka and Anakin, or here, but I then decided to stop it here instead. Kind of a cliffhanger moment you know and I don't really do those often. As it stands, it looks like Mat is in a bit of a bind. Weaponless and a prisoner, things are not looking bright for him.**

 **Sorry this chapter took so long. Some assignments for college kind of got the better of me and monopolized the majority of my time so its why this took longer than I would have liked. The next one probably won't take as long but I'm not fully sure on that part.**

 **Now for review replies:**

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	5. 4 Battle at the Monastery

I cannot believe my luck. Here I am captured by the separatists after Ventress was lucky enough to completely blindside me and knock the air out of me before taking my lightsaber. I've only heard stories about her but she's just as spiteful as what I figured she might be. While she left to intercept Master Skywalker and Ahsoka, I am currently being led to where the rest of their prisoners are and I am not happy about it. _'Basically the second mission I've undertaken and I've already been captured. Great.'_ This is really not something I want my master to find out so I'm hoping soon I can get out of this and reclaim what was mine from that surprise hitting assassin.

As soon as I make it outside, night has already started to take hold and I smile a little at seeing the Republic cruiser having finally come in to help. A small dogfight in the air has already started between both sides as I'm slowly being walked up to the rest of the prisoners. While I don't like that so many of them are captured, I do like that there aren't that many clone bodies littering the entrance.

"General?" I hear Rex's voice of slight surprise and confusion as I come into view.

"Hey Rex." I reply as I come up to them and join their line.

"You were captured."

"Thanks for pointing that out Captain Obvious." I retort annoyed. While I don't mean to bite his head off, my annoyance is soaring new heights at how easy I was put into this position.

The clones glance at each other before Rex looks back at me. "How did…?" His question trails off, no doubt to not spark my ire but also curious as well.

I let out a sigh and slightly shake my head. "I take one corner without looking and Ventress gut punches me." I mumble.

"Hey quiet! No talking prisoners!" One of the droids, a captain I think, I don't know I don't really care, tells us. While our odds still aren't exactly the best right now, we decide to just keep quiet and hopefully wait for our opportunity to present itself.

"Come in, Rex. Do you copy? Rex?" Fortunately that comes in the form of Master Skywalker contacting him over his commlink.

"Did you hear that?"

"It came from the prisoners." Two droids mutter as they hear him over the communication device.

"Let me show you how it works, clanker." Amazingly, the droid is stupid enough to lean in, giving Rex the perfect opportunity to bash its head around and grab its gun. A barrage of red blaster bolts try to hit Rex as the rest of us duck for cover but he uses the droids body as a makeshift shield before returning fire. Other clones begin following his example and start disarming the droids before turning their own weapons against them. Not all of them though were able to grab a blaster so they had to retreat to the destroyed walker for cover, me included. As soon as I move behind one of the legs and duck for cover, I pop back out and launch a force push around us, knocking down or back a majority of the droids that were keeping guard of us.

"Get to cover!" I quickly order for the clones to do. I didn't really have to seeing as it'd be suicide to stay out in the open so there were already running towards us. Rex quickly moves next to me in the same cover. "Quick thinking Captain!" I compliment him for the quick work he did to give us this opportunity.

"Thanks General!"

"Captain Rex, respond." Master Skywalker speaks over the comm and now that we are somewhat free, Rex can answer.

"I read you, General. We're pinned down in the courtyard." He tells him of the situation, a shot nearly hitting the both of us.

"Don't worry, Rex. Mat should be there soon to back you up."

We both stare at the commlink on his arm even amidst the blaster fire flying all around us. We then stare at each other before I lean in closer to his arm. "Uhhhh, sorry Master. But I'm kind of in the mess too."

"I knew it!" My brow furrows as I distinctly here Ahsoka in the background.

"Shush! Mat, what happened?" Master Skywalker asks me after shushing his Padawan.

Before I can answer, a blaster bolt hits the cover we are in, making us flinch a little. "Can't really explain it Master Skywalker! Kind of busy right now!" I yell into the comm device before I lean out and send another wave of force out, knocking the enemy back some more before getting into cover.

"Do you need help?" Before we can answer, another set of blasters nearly hit us, forcing Rex to pop out and return fire. "I'll take that as a yes. Stand by, we're on our way. Skywalker, out." Not one to turn down the help, he turns off his comm and we focus back on our situation.

"Well, at least we'll have some help soon." Rex says with slight hope since we were just told we're getting backup from two more Jedi, who are much better equipped than I am currently.

"Hopefully. But I'm kind of skeptic of that since they haven't been intercepted by Ventress yet. She's going to keep them from backing us up." I tell him what's really going to happen, or at least most likely.

"So we shouldn't expect his help?"

"Basically."

"Just what we need." I share Rex's mood at the promise of backup but not actually getting it.

Another blaster shot nearly hits me before Rex returns the favor in kind. "Ah! Crap!" I growl at nearly getting killed and slightly frustrated that I don't have my lightsaber with me. I look around and notice another clone nearby who wasn't able to grab a weapon before looking down at the one in Rex's hands. After I glance out and see several B1 droids moving in close, I grab Rex's arm to keep him from firing. "Hold fire for a second." Before he can think to protest on why he should in this bad situation we are in, I throw my arm out and instead of pushing I pull the droids towards us. They let out cries of surprise as they come in right up to us and past some of our covers.

"Hey! What happene—"

I don't give the droid the chance to finish that question before I stomp my foot on its neck, breaking it before I reach down and take its weapon. The rest of the unarmed clones do the same as everyone of us is armed again. Some clones who are already armed even take out the droids before tossing the extra gun towards their pinned down brothers.

"Nice one, sir!"

"You got it! Let's take these clankers down!" I accentuate that by leaning out and opening fire on the droids. The rest of my men yell out in agreement as they open fire as well. A ton of battle droids fall to the ground as our shots take them down well enough. Growing up in the temple and learning how to fight as a Jedi I was never able to actually use a blaster or as extensively as I would have liked. Don't like the idea of my first blaster use in combat to be of the droids E-5 but I can't be picky. The weapon is somewhat inaccurate but considering the length of this courtyard and how close the enemy is, I'm able to compensate enough to start dropping droids. While several legs of the destroyed walker are able to keep the machine above us and somewhat standing with only its front laying on the ground, the rapid fire of blaster bolts impact against the legs we are using for cover, making the giant machine completely fall on its stomach with its legs broken off around it. This gives us some low cover options to use against the waves of droids sent after us. At one point Rex and I exhaust a fair number of droids on the side we are on so we need to relocate to back up more of his brothers. We need to get to better positioning against the enemy so I follow Rex's lead as he climbs the destroyed walker, giving us a small height advantage as we fire down at the enemy before joining another clone who was close to getting overrun.

"We can't hold out much longer, sir! Where's General Skywalker?" The clone asks us once we land next to him and he's not wrong. We are currently outmanned, outgunned and completely surrounded on all sides and the situation is looking that much grimmer with each passing second. While we take out the droids in the courtyard in large scores, it feels like an endless wave of them keeps appearing from the dropships still docked at the end platform from when we first got here.

"He'll be here." Rex says and returns fire as do I. I'm still not confident in his quick response to getting to us but I guess a little hope from the men can't hurt. A couple B2's open fire on us but I quickly fire several shots into their legs, making them fall to the ground where a couple well-placed shots takes them down.

Eventually, the fight starts to become even more intense as several vulture droids lands and begin opening fire on us as well. Most of us are forced back into cover from the onslaught but one of the clones isn't as deterred as he pops back out and shoots a flurry of shots right at one of the spaceship droid. His shots ring true as the droid falls over dead, taking several more droids along with it right on them. "Nice takedown!" I praise the clone for his takedown of the walking spaceship.

"This is it! Scrap them!" Rex shouts and our morale skyrockets. He, I and the other clone vault over our cover and use the dead vulture droid as more cover against the enemy. Their of course is a reason why the Republic developed their own weapons because as we continue to fire, the other clone with us has his weapon short out of ammo and we don't have any spare power cells to reload it. These weapons may be powerful but they're inaccurate. I'm forced back into cover as one particular B2 battle droid suppresses me back in.

"Hraaaaa!" Without a weapon to use, the clone jumps over and charges the B2. I look and watch as he goes right up to the droid and hits its shooting arm away from him but as he tries to hit it again, the droid grabs him and begins to hoist him up. I don't have a shot on the droid so I opt instead to use the force to pull them both closer to us. The droid misses its point blank shot and comes flying over to us. While Rex puts down the droid, I grab the clone and pull him back into cover. "Arhh. Thanks general. Sorry about that." He apologizes for the head on attack he did against the enemy that failed.

"It's alright. You tried." I stand up and fire at some more droids before ducking back down. "Hey, listen. Next time you run out of ammo," I stand up, shoot down a couple B1's before throwing my weapon away and pull both fallen blasters to us. "Just ask." I finish with a smile as I hand him the extra gun.

"Heh, I'll do that sir." He nods before we go back opening fire on these soon to be scrap heaps of metal. The fighting continues to heat up as more droids just continue to push themselves against us while at the same time even more of our men continue to fall. Already I can see several more clones losing their weapons as they run out of ammo and are forced to hunker down. Things begin to look grim as finally we hold fire as the droids completely surround us, forcing us up on the destroyed vulture droid and keep our weapons trained on the enemy but don't fire. If we do, they can just easily wipe us out.

"Surrender, Republic dogs!" One droid calls out to us and demands we do.

"We've got you outnumbered!" Rex replies and as I look up at the cruiser that had joined our airspace, he's technically not wrong.

"Outnumbered? Wait. One, two, three…"

"Wait, is he serious?" I can't help but ask my men around me at the droid actually COUNTING! They simply shrug at the absurdity right before a strafe of green blaster shots destroy the droids. Up above we see my masters starship fly by close to the ground, shooting the enemy right before he jumps out at the last second and joins the fight. He rolls and begins cutting down droids left and right, giving us a much-needed reprieve. The rest of our reinforcements rolls in with several gunships opening fire on the droids carrier ships and blowing them to kingdom come. Next our ground reinforcements come in as Cody and the rest of his men start descending via ropes from more gunships that stopped nearby. They open fire and take out a ton of droids on one side of us before joining up with us in all our makeshift cover as more gunships strafe the enemy. "Hey Cody! Nice to see you again!" I call out to him as I open fire some more, giving them some cover as they make their way to us.

"Likewise, sir!" He replies and he and his men give spare blaster rifles to Rex and the rest of the survivors.

"Where's Skywalker?" My master asks of Rex once he makes it to us.

"Best guess is he's still in the castle, sir." He replies.

"He was going to make it help us but I'm pretty sure Ventress intercepted him!" I shout over the blaster fire.

"Keep the droids occupied. I'll go find him!" My master turns to me. "Stay here and help them keep this area clear!" He orders me and I nod. Just before he goes, he stops and turns back to me before looking closely at me. "Mat, where's your lightsaber?" Pretty sure my face blanches at the question I was secretly dreading after I first lost it.

"Uhhh, long story short Master, Ventress took it." I explain to him as quickly as I can and as best without making it seem like its my fault whatsoever and instead the Sith's.

"You LOST your lightsaber?!" He asks loudly and completely surprised that I don't have it with me. Instead of blocking a blaster shot, he simply dodges it before going back to deflecting them.

"I'm not proud of it Master! This is NOT the impression I wanted to have with you! I'll stay here and back the clones while you go deal with Ventress." I do what I can to shift the focus on the more pressing matter of the situation, such as the droids when I open fire on some before looking back at my cross master.

He gives me a critical look. "We will discuss this later." My shoulders slump a little at that as he turns to leave.

"Oh! Master!" He stops and turns back to me one last time. "When you face her, I'd really appreciate it if you got me my lightsaber back." I propose he'd try to do with a hopeful smile. While I am still irked that I lost it in the first place, I'm not really looking forward to having to make an entirely new lightsaber to replace it.

My master stares back at me for a second before he smirks and nods. "I'll do what I can." With the assurance that he at least has that on mind, I relax a bit more before he takes off to go deal with her.

Once my master is gone, I turn to Cody. "Hey, Cody. Got any spare blasters for me?" Without a word, he waves over a clone carrying a pack of extra weapons and I can't help but smile as I look at them. It feels good now that I'm equipped with Republic weaponry. The short DC-15s blaster carbine more specifically along with the powerful DC-17 blaster pistol as my secondary, just in case. I fire a few times at some droids with the 15 and I grin at the ease I was able to take them down. "Nice. Thank you Commander."

"No problem. Heh, I have to admit its not often I see a Jedi using a blaster." I roll my eyes at the comment as we all continue to fire at the enemy.

"Yeah well, it wasn't exactly on my list of things to do. On your left!" I quickly shift my aim to a nearby column as a B2 started coming out from behind it. A quick burst and the droid falls to the ground dead before it can get a shot off on our flank. "But… I'm not opposed to the idea!" I grin before firing again at the majority of the enemy.

"Nice shooting sir! Jedi weapon or blaster, your taking down clankers either way."

"Thanks Rex." Pleasantries out the way, while my men continue to take down the enemy, I glance to the main doorway into the monastery as I spot colors of both blue and red. My master stands several feet into the building with Ventress being guarded by two B2 droids. They seem to be having a conversation before my master gets ready to fight her. Ventress responds by commanding the droids to open fire while she retreats deeper into the building. My master easily dispatches the droids before following the assassin deeper in. After the cheap shot that she did on me, I don't want my master to have to deal with anything similar that could leave him in a shape a whole lot worse than me. She thought I was weak and didn't think I was worth the trouble but my master… is a master.

My focus turns back to fight at hand as their's numbers begin dwindling. The enemy starts to become routed after our onslaught so the need for cover isn't prioritized anymore. I and the rest of the clones slowly walk out as we continue to open fire on all the straggler droids all over.

"Captain Rex, this is General Skywalker." Master Skywalker's voice comes over the comm. I cover Rex while he answers.

"Yes, General."

"We're not going to be able help you." Master Skywalker replies in a somewhat depressed tone.

"Don't worry about us, General. We'll be all right. The mission always comes first, sir." He replies as we watch the freighter that he's no doubt using fly above us.

"Don't worry Master! We got them on the ropes! It's clean up at this point! Just focus on the huttlet!" I add into the commlink before they cut out.

"Take care Mat!"

"You too!" Ahsoka and I wish each other well before we go back to focusing on our situations, I with the troops and the droids and her saving a very important huttlet. As soon as he shuts off the comm, a small explosion from a blaster bolt happens near us, taking out one of the clones easily as his body goes flying. Turning to the source we watch as a dwarf spider droid begins opening fire on us, forcing many of us to duck and try to open fire on it but it's pretty well armored.

"Cover me!" Rex shouts and runs straight at the droid as we suppress the thing. I'm confused about what he's doing with the grenade but I find out why as he rolls under the droid, plants the grenade and rolls right out before running. I launch a small force push as the droid aims its gun right at the fleeing captain, making it miss just before it explodes. As the pieces rain down, I jog over to the captain.

"Wow. Nice thinking Rex."

"Comes with the training, sir." Rex replies and scans the area for more hostiles.

While he does that, I look back to the entrance of the monastery and get worried. "Hey, Rex." I get the clones attention. "You got this area, right? I need to go back up my master against Ventress." I tell him my plan. While I know my master can take care of himself, his survival and even the capture of the enemy general back in the first battle we were in is tantamount to that, I still can't shake my worry of just one little slip up or a trick and he's gone. My master… _'One-on-one, its on equal terms… but she doesn't play equal. She plays dirty. With me there, that can tip the balance back in our favor.'_

"We got this sir. Jedi are your thing so go ahead and back up General Kenobi." Rex nods at their confidence in taking out the droids.

"We'll make sure you don't get any uninvited guests." Cody speaks up and accentuates it by taking down a couple droids with a quick burst of fire.

"Thanks you two. Take them down for me!" I shout back as I begin running towards the entrance, dodging blaster fire as I go.

"Cover the General and make sure none of them get through that door!" I hear Captain Rex give the order as I make it into the building. A quick look back shows that any droid that were firing on me are easily dispatched by well placed shots to their backs before the rest refocus their efforts on the clones and forget about me. With a clear path, I head off in the direction I saw my master go down.

The sounds of fighting outside begin to grow duller and duller in volume until it becomes an echo. Not wanting to be taken by surprise again, my blaster rifle is up and aimed in front of me at all times as I slowly make my way through the hallways of this place, checking every corner I come across until I manage to come to where they went. My quiet my movement as I spot my master in the center of a very large open room. My senses also tell me that Ventress is in the room as well, not doubt hiding and waiting for a moment to strike.

"Ventress, I know you're here. You can't hide. I feel your frustration. Let me guess, you're after Jabba's young son, too." While my master speaks all around him, I quietly slip in and hug the wall before coming up on a column and barely peaking out to watch the scene. Just after he finishes speaking, Ventress jumps down from above and tries to hit him from behind. I don't even get the chance to stop her before my master blocks her attack. She jumps back from the attack and for some reason turns off her lightsabers before she begins taking off a piece of her clothing. The long skirt she wears comes off and she throws it towards my master. Its another cheap move as she tries to attack him while his view is slightly blocked from the clothing. My master cuts it in two before blocking her attempted sneak attack. "You'll have to do better than that, my darling." I smile at my masters quick thinking as they exchange a couple strike against each other. For a second my worry seems unfounded until Ventress gets the upper hand once she disarms him, sending his lightsaber several feet away from him. "Well, now I'm impressed." Even now, my master still tries to make light of the situation even though he's now defenseless against her. My hands tighten on my blaster as I take aim and watch her come close several times to cutting down my master. He continues to move and dodge back repeatedly away from her strikes but my breath hitches as he suddenly finds no more room to move when his back hits a stone column. She raises her red lightsaber right up to his chest.

"Now you die." She says as she gets ready to cut him down. My hands tighten on my blaster as I steady myself to open fire.

' _I WILL not lose my first master.'_ I think just before putting her in my crosshairs, and firing. Several blue blaster bolts fly out of my weapon and Ventress barely has time to block my first attack with one of her blades but the second shot grazes her shoulder, making her cry out in pain and anger and focus her attention on me rather than my weaponless master. "Get away from my master!"

"Matthew no!"

"You insolent little- Raaaah!" Ventress completely forgets about her original opponent before she kicks my master away and uses the force to jump high into the air and come down on me with both her lightsabers ready to strike me. I break her readiness state as I open fire on her while she's in mid-air. Her blades flow in front of her as she blocks and deflects my shots away or right back at me. While I don't have my own blade to block the hits, my senses are still with me so I'm able to maneuver myself around and dodge the shots. She lands right in front of me and tries to slash me down but misses as I dodge her strikes. I too try to shoot her in close proximity but she's just as crafty in her movements. She brings both her blades up and tries to hit me with both in one swipe but I manage to duck under her attack. This presents me with the perfect opportunity to throw my shoulder right into her stomach. She grunts as she's thrown back from the hit but I quickly follow up with meleeing her with my rifle. I take a few steps back to put some distance and try to shoot her but she recovers quicker than I can fire. She blocks the shots again and moves in close but instead of going for a full on slash at me, she feints and slams her foot into my stomach.

"Gaah!" I grunt as I'm pushed back and stunned. I barely have enough time to look up as she brings her lightsabers down onto me. I bring my blaster rifle up just in time for it to take her attack on me. The weapon is broken completely in half and I'm left momentarily defenseless as she launches two kicks at me. I lift off the ground for a second before slamming hard onto the ground a few feet away. I groan as I lay there before looking up and spotting Ventress walk right up to me.

"I should have finished you off the first time." She threatens as one of her blades is brought delicately close to my neck.

My eyes glance down to the point of the glowing blade before back up at her and smirk. "Yeah, you probably should have." She growls at my words and brings her blade up and ready to slash my head off.

I'm one step ahead of her though as my hand grabs my sidearm and opens fire at her from my hip. She ducks back as my first shot narrowly misses her head and before she can hit me, my focus with both hands and open fire as fast as I can on her. Because of how close we are, she has no chance to deflect the shots back at me and can only barely dodge or block the shots as she jumps back away from me. I jump onto my feet but I don't let up on my fire until we're far enough away from each other and she deflects my last shot back at me. I lean to the side as it passes me and aim back at her. Our fight pauses as we continue to stare at each other with me breathing steadily. Having to dodge all those cuts and slashes kind of left me winded, along with getting hit… again. "I'd say that was interesting as well." My master says as he comes up from behind me. A quick use of the force and he brings his lightsaber back into his grip. "Thank you, Mat. Without a lightsaber, that was still impressive." He pats me on the shoulder, making me relax and become less tense.

"Thank you master. I did what I could." I reply and while I keep my aim focused on her, my posture relaxes a bit more now that my more experienced Jedi Master is armed and ready to fight again.

"Now, shall we continue?" He says to Ventress and readies himself again to fight her.

She gets a sadistic grin before she twirls her lightsabers around a few times and gets into her own stance. "My pleasure."

I straighten up and take aim but my master place his hand on my shoulder, making me look at him. "Don't worry. She just surprised me before."

"The feelings mutual master." I reply, implying her tendency to surprise the both of us.

"Be that as it may, stay back and only fire when you are sure you have clear shot or if she tries another trick." He orders on what I should do and I nod.

"Don't worry. I'll be sure not to shoot you. Pretty sure it wouldn't look well with the other Jedi if you hit you." I sarcastically say with a grin.

"Yes, I imagine it would." He replies in the same tone before he starts walking forward to engage our common enemy. She moves to attack him as well but I move to the side and open fire on her, making her focus on my weapons fire rather than my master. Once he gets close enough to her, I stop firing and let the two of them engage in lightsaber combat. Most of the lightsaber duels I've been a part of were always training sessions with droids and practice swords with other students or instructors so they were never anything to bat an eye at. To see two experienced and powerful force users engage in death defying lightsaber combat is nothing short of exhilarating. When she's not pulling out tricks to gain an upper hand, the flow of how they fight is nothing sort of breathtaking as one wrong move could mean the end of one of their lives. While most likely that is true for my master, I feel as though he might be able to take her down with actually killing her. The sound of the energies of their weapons hitting each other is amazing and almost makes me forget they can be just as deadly.

Ventress eventually kicks my master away and makes him slam into a column. Before she can attack him, I take the opportunity to fire a few shots at her. Of course none of them hit her as she dodges or deflects them but it's enough for her to focus on me for just a few seconds. She's also pretty angry at my interference as she sends out a force push towards me. I quickly roll into cover behind another column as I can feel the energy crash past or against my cover. Moving back out, she focuses back into a lightsaber duel with my master and I have to wait for another opportune moment for me. Their fighting doesn't last long until Ventress tries for a leg strike and my master decides to go for a more heightened location in their fighting. He bounces off the columns until he makes it to some narrow walkways high above the room. Ventress follows soon after with a single force imbued jump straight towards him. "Aw man." I groan at the new effort needed in order to be a part of the fight. All the fighting today has me a little winded so it takes me some movements to get on the same level as them but hidden away. I'm further away from them as they prepare to square off yet again.

"We know of Dooku's plot to turn the Hutts against us. It will not succeed." My master says to her.

"It will when the truth dies with you." She threatens him harshly before attacking. The fighting becomes complicated for my master as the lack of area movement means her onslaught is that much deadlier. After a tense stalemate between the two where my master pushes her off him, she connects her two lightsabers to take on a sort of mismatched but still deadly double-bladed lightsaber stance. For a second, my master and I lock eyes before he quickly jerks his head to his left. He then jumps up and out one of the carved circular windows in the room. Ventress watches him go before she turns around and looks at me. I fire a couple shots before I quickly follow my master out a window as well. "You can't run." I manage to hear her say just before I make it out. I land with a grunt before I spot my master far off on the same walkway we landed on. Not long after Ventress lands equal distance between us, making the both of us ready our weapons at her.

A sudden drop in feeling of the force catches all of us by surprise, none more so than Ventress. "I sense it, too. Anakin is gone. You've failed, Ventress." My master says to her, pointing out the lack of energy presence we feel from Master Skywalker and in turn Ahsoka. This angers her as she engages him yet again. Her anger is making her reckless as my master easily blocks her attacks, even going as far as to break the connection of both her lightsabers. They attack each other again until my master catches her lightsabers with his and holds them to the side. "Your master will not be pleased." He mentions one final time before with a quick swipe he sends one of her lightsabers careening off the side. I get a small smug satisfaction at seeing her lose her weapon for a change.

"Jedi scum!" She attacks him again but fails with only one lightsaber as he easily blocks her hits and pushes her back. Just before she can attack him again in blind rage, I fire a shot right at her feet, making her jump as she almost forgot me in this instance.

"The Hutt is safe. Your surrounded. There's no point to fighting any longer. We've won. Lay down your weapon." My master proposes she do.

"Aaaannd, my lightsaber returned too please." I add in, gesturing to the weapon still clipped to her belt as I walk closer to the two of them, my blaster pistol still primed and ready to shoot. She growls in frustration as she glances down at it before looking at the both of us. While it's a tempting offer in this situation, someone like her won't take it. That's even more true as a vulture droid comes sweeping in and she jumps for it. I lean over and open fire on them as she flies off into the sky but its too fast. Before long she's already out of my range of fire and gone. My master walks up to me as we can only watch as she disappears into the sky. No doubt to get back to their cruiser engaging ours high in the sky. I let out a long sigh as my gun hand falls to my side and I run my other hand through my hair. "I really shouldn't be surprised she wouldn't surrender so easily right Master?" I ask him.

"When it comes to her, no not really."

I let out a long sigh of disappointment. "Was really hoping she would have at least given me my lightsaber back."

"Don't worry, Mat. Either we'll find her again and get it back from her, or you'll just have to make another one." He says in a somewhat hopeful manner.

"I think I'd rather fight her again." I deadpan say. Not that there's anything wrong with making another one, just seems like a hassle for me to get another crystal all over again and such. My weapons still intact, it's just out of my reach. A small explosion can be heard back where our men are fighting at. "Probably best we get back to our men. Without her here, all we need to do is clear out the droids."

"Agreed. Let's move." We begin making our way back inside and backtrack our way to the fighting. "By the way, how DID she manage to get your lightsaber?"

"What? Poh! Oof!" I am caught off-guard by the question as when just before I make it through one of the windows, my foot gets caught and I almost plummet to the ground if I didn't grab the stone walkway they were fighting on before.

* * *

After my less than stellar entry into the building, we jogged our way back to the men where I quickly explained to my master how she sucker punched me and took my weapon. He scolded me a little and told me to be more mindful in the future and wasn't really surprised she'd do something like that. We continue to make our way back to the main fighting area of the courtyard and while the majority of the droids have been destroyed, there's still a sizeable number here we need to take out before we can properly secure the area. We immediately spot Captain Rex behind some cover as we make our way to him. While my master deflects blaster shots I slide into cover right next to him and join in the firing.

"Captain, I understand General Skywalker escaped." My master says to Rex as he continues to deflect shots away from us.

"Yes, sir. On some beat-up old space freighter." A blaster shot nearly takes our heads off as it impacts the hull of the destroyed walker right next to us. I retaliate and hit the droid that almost got us. "I'll be surprised if he even makes it to Tatooine in that junker." Rex comments his opinion on the reliability of their makeshift ship. The quick glance I saw of the ship wasn't much, neither was the ship, but we can't be picky on how they get to the planet if they had trouble getting to our cruiser.

"If anybody can fly a bucket of bolts through hyperspace, he can." We'll have to take my masters word for it as theirs no way we can possibly catch up to them now.

"Let's hope so. It's all on him now and Ahsoka now." I add my own opinion on it before we all focus on the mop up. Before we can do anymore, my masters holotransmitter starts beeping.

"Obi-wan, come in. Do you copy?" A transmission comes in from Master Skywalker. He moves behind the destroyed walker while I go with him before my master wastes no time in answering.

"Kenobi here. Have you reached Tatooine yet?" He quickly asks on a sort of update on their missions progress.

"Almost, but we ran into a small—"

"Anakin, did you get shot down again?"

"Wait, this isn't the first time?!" I can't help but ask loudly at the idea before I quickly fire a couple shots out of cover before going back to the conversation.

"Yes." Ahsoka speaks up.

"This ship is too slow. I haven't had time to modify it yet." Master Skywalker complains and I can't really blame him. Really anyone would when being shot down.

"We're still cleaning up your other mess. But we'll get there."

"Take care, you two." I call out to them, momentarily putting myself in transmission as well.

"Back at you Ma- Wait, Mat, where's your light—"

Apparently, I also showed my blaster pistol and before Ahsoka could question why I am using a blaster to begin with and not my lightsaber, I shut off the transmission.

* * *

Ahsoka stares at where the holotransmitter was just working a second ago, a look of disbelief on her face.

"Did… did he just- Did he hang up on me?!" She asks her master loudly and very slightly annoyed.

"Uhhh, we have more important matters to deal with right now Ahsoka!" Anakin replies, too focused on trying to keep themselves from turning into a giant fireball of scrap metal entering the desert planet's atmosphere.

"Ughhh! Unbelievable." She grumbles before looking down at the little huttlet in her arms. "He hung up on me. Can you believe it, Stinky?" She asks the hutt.

The little guy only wails a little and what amounts to a slight shrug.

* * *

My master stares at me after I pressed the button. "She doesn't need to know about that." I say.

"Not right now. But she will eventually find out once this missions over." He tells me as he puts the device away and reactivates his weapon.

"Doesn't mean I can't stall." I reply as we go back to fighting next to Rex. Much the droids have been destroyed already but we need a little more push. I take down a couple more of them until my blaster runs out of ammo. I groan and crouch back down into cover. "Rex. I need a power cell."

"Here you are sir." He wastes no time in giving me a spare power cell before firing again. After I quickly reload the weapon, I take note that the last of the droids we are fighting against are huddled against one of the walls and stone columns with several of their dwarf and vulture droids laying around them, being used as makeshift cover. I reach over and grab Rex's spare blaster pistol and dual wield them as I begin to think up a plan.

"Master, is it alright if we take out the last of the droids?" I ask permission for him as I nod my head to the last the droids. He glances at me before taking note of how many droids there are too and nods.

"Be my guest. Just… be careful." He quickly adds the last part as a precaution.

"I will Master." I fire a few more shots before pulling Rex back. "Alright Captain Rex. You got any thermal detonators left?" I ask him.

"Just one."

"Mmmm, I was hoping for more." I mumble before looking at the rest of the clones. "Anyone spare a grenade?!" I shout out my request.

"Here you are sir!" A clone further up replies and tosses me his thermal det. back to me. Putting one my pistols down, I quickly grab the ordinance before clipping it to my belt and grabbing my blaster again.

"Thanks!" I reply my thanks and saying my plan. "Alright here's what we're going to do! Captain Rex. You and I are going to charge the enemy's position and take them out when we're right on top of them. I'm going to first throw my thermal at them and break apart their ranks, giving us the chance to move in. Master, I'm gonna need your help to get this over to them from here. When we get close enough, Rex you're going to toss yours right at them and blow up as many of them as you can. The rest of you cover us as much as you can! Everyone ready?"

"Ready!" Everyone replies and I glance to my master who nods and prepares himself.

"Here we go." I mutter to myself and grab m grenade again and prime it. "Three…" I lean back and get an angle of how to throw it. "Two…" I glance to my master as I curl my arm back to see him ready. "… ONE!" I yell and toss the grenade as hard as I can towards the enemy before rearming myself with both blaster pistols. My master for his part uses the force to carry my grenade closer to the enemy's cover. It rolls right up to the central part of their cover and explodes in a fiery explosion, opening it up and knocking several battle droids to the ground. "That's it! Captain let's move!"

"Right behind you sir!" Rex acknowledges the command and we both vault over our cover before sprinting towards the enemy. We both open fire as much and as fast as we can at the enemy, trying to suppress them while at the same time we take a few of them down. As soon as we make it half way, its time.

"Captain do it!"

"Fire in the hole!" He shouts as he tosses the grenade over the enemys cover and right in the middle of them. Before they can shoot us, we roll on the ground and slide into both sides of the destroyed cover and wait for the grenade to go off.

The explosion from the grenade goes off, making us almost feel the energy from the blasts before we jump to our feet and clean up. Most of the droids were knocked to the ground with only a few still standing. We focus down on the standing ones before moving our fire to the downed ones. We move out of cover as we scrap the remaining droids easily enough. The last of the droids are a squad of B1's and B2's and it takes several shots to take down the Super Battle droids but them being on the ground is child's play. Once we see them all offlined, I do a quick look around and see theirs no other fighting or droids for us to fight. I nod and walk over to Rex. "Well, that takes care of that. See anymore hostiles?"

"No sir. The courtyard looks secure but I'll have some secure the area."

"Good idea." I nod to Rex. "Good work Captain."

"Thank you, sir." He gives me a nod as well and cocks his head to the side. "Watch out!" Before I can say or do anything, he suddenly grabs me and tosses me to the ground. "Arhhh!" Just where I was standing, a blaster bolt hits him on his left shoulder where his added armor pieces are.

"REX!" I yell as he goes down before rolling over to find the enemy. A lone B1 battle droid lays on the ground with one of its legs torn off from the grenade and still holds its blaster rifle aimed at where we were. It tries to shift its aim towards me but I'm already one step ahead of it as both of my blasters fire first. I fire a couple shots at first, instantly tearing apart its arm and blaster before I get onto my feet, all while I fire at the same time. I take a couple steps towards it as I unload as many blaster shots as I can into the body, completely perforating the body until I am absolutely sure it will not be getting up again. Once I'm done, I turn to Rex's body. "Rex!" I drop my guns and run over to him. "Rex. Rex! Come on man don't be dead. Not now!" I almost yell as I begin shaking him to try in some form of attempt to wake him up.

"…Ahhh." After a few seconds of shaking and my worries steadily rising, his sudden intake of breath and groaning gives me immense relief. "Oooww. Okay… that hurt." He groans as he tries to sit up.

"Geez, Rex. You almost gave me a heart attack." I say as I help the guy stand up on his feet. I'm careful though as the blaster mark on his armor is still smoking. "But thanks for saving me. You alright?" I ask.

"Yeah. I'm good." He replies while also rolling his shoulder a bit. "The shot took the bulky part of my armor, so besides being knocked down, I'm good to go."

I let out a relieved sigh and smile at the news. "That's great to hear. Wouldn't do well to be taken out as soon as the battle ended." I pat his shoulder and gesture for us to make it back to the others.

"Heh, preferably not sir." As soon as we make it back to the others, my master is staring at me closely before looking at Captain Rex.

"Everything well, Captain?" He asks him, in which he salutes him back.

"All good, General. That's the last of the droids. I'll leave some men here to help secure the place."

"Excellent." He nods and turns to Cody who is walking up to us. "Commander, call in some transport to get us back on the cruiser. We need to get to Skywalker as quick as we can to help him with the huttlet."

"Yes, General." He salutes my master before radioing for gunship transport to come pick us up.

"You think we'll make it in time?" I ask my master. Master Skywalker and Ahsoka already had a big lead on us while we were bogged down on dealing with the enemy and it's going to take some time before we can make it to them in time.

"I hope so, Mat. I hope so." My master hopes as I do when a LAAT gunships flies in low and lands in front of us.

* * *

After being picked up we wasted no time in getting back to the cruiser and ordering for the jump to hyperspace to get underway. We stand on the bridge of the ship as the swirl of hyperspace passes us while we can only wait for us to get to our destination. As a precaution and to give a report on our mission, my master decides to call back to Coruscant.

"Anakin has reached Tatooine with the huttlet master, but he's still in grave danger. Separatist troops are desperate to intercept him. I think this whole plot was engineered by Dooku to convince Jabba we kidnapped his son." My master explains to Master Yoda and the Chancellor in his office. I'm not a part of the conversation so I stand off to the side while they talk.

"If believe this, the Hutts do, ended will our chance of a treaty with them be. Join Dooku and the Separatists, Jabba will, yes." Master Yoda surmises what might happen and it's not an option we can afford to let happen. The wars already being tipped in the Separatists favor and if the Hutts join them, that's basically it.

"That would be a disaster. We must have this alliance with the Hutts if we are to win the war in the Outer Rim." The Chancellor too doesn't like what this may entail and is on point on the seriousness this mission is for us.

"In Skywalker is the Republic's only hope. Return Jabba's son, he must."

"Anakin's experience with the Hutts should help. He'll come through." My master tries to put some measure of hope in the situation before cutting the connection. Once its shut down, I notice him let out a small sigh of frustration as he cups his chin.

"Something the matter, Master?" I ask as I walk up to him.

He continues to stare forward as he speaks. "I wasn't lying when I said he'll come through. Its just… I can't help but think something may go wrong."

I shrug. "Honestly Master, I can't imagine anyone can be prepared for what Master Skywalker would have to deal with." I voice my opinion on the matter, as a way to try to ease my master of his worries. I think it works somewhat as he chuckles.

"That's true. Still, we better not delay in getting to him and his Padawan as quick as we can."

On that, we can agree wholeheartedly.

We make it to Tatooine as quick as we can. Along the way we were able to pick up Master Yoda as we crossed paths and now we are making our way to the Hutt palace on the desert planet. I, Master Yoda and my master along with a group of clones are on the first gunship down to the planets surface. None of us say anything as we anxiously wait to see how everything went and hopefully it went well. While I know returning Jabba's son is the top priority, I can't help but keep repeating in my head for Ahsoka to be alright. She's my friend and already this our second mission. I lost my lightsaber while I don't know what happened to her. _'Please be alright.'_

It only takes a couple minutes but we eventually make it to the ground. As soon as the doors slide open, I can't help but smile as I see everyone alright. Ahsoka, although she looks like she's seen better days, and her master await us with even Jabba the Hutt waiting for us. They are all alright with Jabba even holding his son in one of his arms.

The mission was a success.

* * *

"Wait, what happened?"

"You heard me. Ventress surprised me and took my weapon."

"She 'surprised' you?"

"Don't give me that look. I took a corner too fast and she knocked the air out of me. I was dazed too much to properly defend myself against her as she knocked me down and took my weapon. After that it was prisoner time with the rest of our men, Captain Rex inciting a riot, grabbing a blaster rifle and surviving until reinforcements could get there."

"Wow, that is crazy."

"It sure was." I agree with Ahsoka. Right now we are back on the cruiser in my quarters and relaxing after the hectic amount of days we spent on our first assignments with our masters. I guess if there was ever a time to prove our skills, this is was as good as we can do without actually dying. "So what exactly happened with you?"

"Alright, here's what happened. My—"

Suddenly the door opens and in walks my master who looks… troubled by something. He perks up slightly as he sees me. "Ah, Mat. There you are. I'm sorry Ahsoka but I must ask you to leave. I have something I need to discuss privately with my Padawan." He requests when he sees me talking with Ahsoka.

We look at each other confused before she nods and gets up. "A-Alright Master. I'll leave you two to it. We'll talk later Mat. See ya." She directs the last couple of sentences to me when she makes it to the door. Once she passes through it and the doors closes shut, my master gets a firm look on his expression as he looks at me.

"Master, what's wrong? Is this about losing my lightsaber?" I ask.

"No, nothing like that. What I wanted to speak to you about is more like… a warning than anything else."

"A warning?" I ask confused.

"Mat, I feel I need to tell you to be very careful when it comes to taking part in battles."

"What do you mean Master?" I ask to clarify.

"Back at the Monastery, when Rex was almost killed during the end, I sensed your anger as you were shooting the droid that shot him."

"…Oh." I moan sadly as I remember what happened. Now that I remember the event that took place, I'll admit my anger heighted more than I would have liked when I saw Rex get shot like that. The idea of losing him so easily, by my own lack of attention no less… yeah I was angry. I was very angry at the idea of a simple droid I missed killing Rex AFTER he pushed me out of the way and took the hit for me. Perforating that droid until it was in bits and pieces with its entire chassis scorched black from the blaster shots was the least I could do in my anger, with my concern for my friend overriding soon after.

"While Rex did survive the hit, I need you to acknowledge that in war, there will be death and sacrifices no matter what. You have to be careful with the bonds you unknowingly make or else losing them can be just as much fuel for the dark side as any other. Do you understand?" My master calmly and carefully instructs of me to do. For Jedi, we have to be careful with our emotions or else if we aren't careful then we can very much fall to the dark side. Bonds we make with people we care about or fight alongside can be have serious repercussions to us should the person we care about… perish.

I nod directly at my master in understanding. "I understand, Master. I'll be careful in the future."

"I'm glad to hear that." He smiles at me and pats me on the shoulder. "We still got a long way to go before this war is over and I look forward to being your teacher through the whole way. You've shown to be quite a battle strategists and have shown that even when things look bleak, you still manage to make the best of the situation. I welcome being your Master." He bows the top half of his body slightly at me.

I return my masters smile and give him a slight bow. "And I look forward and am honored to be your Padawan through our future endeavors as well."

"Likewise." Seeing as how we are happy with the two of us being paired in our Master and Padawan relationship, its safe to say things will work out fine for us. "I'm going to head back up to the bridge now. I need to speak with Master Yoda and hopefully we'll be back at Coruscant soon so you can get to work in making your new lightsaber."

"Very well, Master. In the meantime, I think later I'll go brush up on my blaster skills. Maybe Rex and some of the other clones can give me some tips." I mutter the last part to myself. Getting my hands on a lightsaber is one thing, but this whole situation has proved that if I lose it again, having the skills to use blasters can go a long way in helping me stay alive. After all, during the fight with Ventress my master did momentarily lose his lightsaber so any Jedi could be without it.

"I'm sure they will. Well, I'll leave you be. Rest up, Mat. You deserve." He says and turns around before heading out the door.

"Thank you, Master. Take care." I call out to him before he's gone. For a few more seconds I sit on my bed and take a moment to rest before I get up and head over to Ahsoka's room. When I open the door, I see her laying on her bed, right leg crossed over the other with it idly bobbing in a somewhat bored fashion. As soon as she hears the door open does she notice me and smirk.

"Hey you. What did Master Kenobi need?" She asks, no doubt curious.

I wave her off as I sit down in a chair. "Just telling me to be careful mostly. I'm here for before we were interrupted. You were telling me what happened on your end?" I ask, still curious myself on what she had to deal with.

"Oh right!" She perks up and swings herself into a sitting position as she begins to recount what she had to deal with.

* * *

Alright, so apparently the stuff Ahsoka had to deal with revolved around having ride a wild animal to an abandoned freighter, destroy the fake caretaker we first met at the monastery, survive a crash landing because of her masters 'genius' ideas, bear the desert planets heat before having to take on three IG-100 MagnaGuard droids. Those droids are no slouches compared to the rest of the droid army and I've heard stories they can even take on and kill experienced Jedi. Not to mention their electrostaffs can block lightsaber attacks so that's pretty big in of itself. So we both had to deal with death defying situations with very low odds on our sides. Ahsoka had to deal with droids that can basically go toe to toe with a Master Jedi, and I had to fight without my lightsaber against an almost limitless amount of droids. Hard to say who had it rougher but I'm glad we both still made it out alright. That being said, I really do need to brush up on my blaster skills until it comes time for me to get a lightsaber back in my hands again. _'I think I remember their being a shooting range somewhere on the ship.'_ I think as I walk down the various hallways looking for said range. After spending long amount of times on these giant ships, just waiting for an assignment to come forth and give the clones the chance to get back out there and fight, the men sometimes will get a bit stir crazy and to make sure none of them get rusty, and to preoccupy them, small shooting ranges are set up on some ships to help.

After taking longer than I care to admit, I finally find the shooting range I was looking for. I passed by several clones as I was walking and it feels kind of weird for them to salute me when I pass them but I guess that's how it is then. Pretty much all Jedi automatically attain the General rank in the Republic Grand army. While I may have just been given the rank right off the bat, I'm going to make sure I earn the rank for the troops. _'Like Rex had said, experience outranks everything.'_ I don't remain in my thoughts long as I almost pass by the door leading to the range. The door slides open and I am met with the sound of continuous blaster fire from the various rifles and weapons. Stepping through the door, I take a look around and look around the entire room at the various clones here. Many of them are standing around and talking to one another but I mostly take note of the clones making use of the dozen firing ranges taking up most of the room. Almost all of them are being used with the men using different weapons used in our army. I see most of the clones firing and practicing with the DC-15A blaster rifles and DC-15s carbines to great effect with a couple using the DC-17 blaster pistols. One clone however gets my attention as he makes use of the Z-6 Rotary cannon against his targets down range. Hearing the rapid fire of the guns discharge and the flow of blue blaster bolts is a beautiful sight for me to behold as I finally get to see one in action.

I spend almost a minute staring at the weapons use in awe until he stops. Whether to reload or is done firing, I don't know as I shake my head and look around for me to get my own rifle. I spot a steel grated section over a counter that's indicative of the quartermaster. I walk up to the counter and look in to see him with his back to me as he rearranges some of his inventory. I knock on the counter a couple times to get his attention. "Yeah yeah. Give me a second. What weapon?" The clone impatiently mutters and asks without looking back at me.

"Huh?"

"Weapon. You're here to shoot right? What weapon and I'll see if we can spare one." He states.

Not really deterred, especially by his attitude, I shrug and state my request. "DC-15A."

"Ha! Plenty of those." He laughs as he pulls one from the racks nearby and begins inspecting it. "Alright, this one should be good to go. Was used only an hour ago but should work fine for you."

"Do I have to sign paperwork?"

"For what? It's not like you're going to steal it, especially not for one of these weapons, and on a ship no less." _'Can't really argue with that. It's not like anyone can safely get off this ship and steal something while it's in transit.'_ It's interesting to note that the guy still hasn't turned back to me, making him think he's talking to another rookie clone. "Just don't break the thing and everything will go smo—" He begins to say but as soon as he places the gun down on the counter and slides it under the grate to me, does he finally see who he's been talking.

"Thank you kindly." I thank him to his stunned face as I take the weapon and walk over to one of the shooting lanes. After taking the DC-15A rifle from the slightly surprised and stunned quartermaster that I make my way to the far end of the shooting range where theirs an open lane for me. As soon as I step up, I slip in the power cell and hear the sound of the weapon powering up. After I shoulder the weapon and make sure its sights are set to my preference, I hit the button to signal the start of the targets. I open fire down range with pin-point accuracy on the majority of the dummy targets. Most of them I take down but some I scowl as I miss them completely. It took me more shots than I care to admit in order to take out the droids back at the monastery and now here on this shooting range I can actually take note and see my misses. Soon the set ends and I step back from my shooting spot before taking a closer look at the rifle. As I do, it's then I notice that how quiet the room is. No one else is shooting or talking for that matter. I glance up to see that everyone in the entire room is staring at me. "What?" I ask out loud.

"What's going on here?" Rex walks in, helmet off as he too takes note of the quiet and wonders what's got everyone still. It's when he spots me that he knows why. "General? What are you doing down here?" He asks me as he walks up.

"Weeellll…" I begin to say as I lay the weapon against my shoulder. "As you may know, I had lost my lightsaber courtesy of Ventress and was unable to get it back. So," I grab the weapon with both hands. "Until I manage to make another one, or somehow get my previous weapon back, I am going to be using blasters when it comes to fighting. Problem is…" I glance at the range as I remember the misses I made. "I'm not as… versed in blaster combat and shooting as I would like. I've learned some about blasters but lightsabers I know a lot more of. So that's why I'm here." I give the captain a hopeful smile. "You think you can give a Jedi some tips on how to shoot properly?"

For a second, he doesn't say or do anything, until his neutral expression breaks into a grin.

' _This is going to be an interesting adventure.'_

* * *

 **First off, I want to apologize to everyone for how long this took to get out. Several things came up that completely ate my time, took away time, or got my attention focused on something else entirely. From classes in college, trying to choose the right classes, different video games getting my attention, getting sick on multiple occasions, my drive to write also took a hit a couple weeks ago and sometimes getting sudden inspiration for my other stories also grabbed my focus as well. Again, I'm sorry everyone for the delay and hopefully I'll be able to keep a somewhat consistent way of writing that allows me to give updates to all my stories.**

 **With that out of the way, this chapter itself took longer than I originally intended and while I am sorry for the long wait, I hope the long content was able to keep you all sufficiently satisfied while I got to work on the next chapter. The idea of a Jedi using a blaster on a regular basis is something I'm going to be doing for this story so I hope this brings some spice to this story at least.**

 **One other thing I want to quickly mention is the fact I started and uploaded a new story by the time this chapter is uploaded. To be more specific, I made a Sword Art Online story so if that gets your attention, go ahead and check it out. If not, that's fine too. Whether I'll devote as much time as I do the rest of my stories will be up for debate. For now though, I'm going to get to work on the next chapter for this story as soon as possible and I'll see if when I post the next one will I do another or work on another story. Either way, I hope you guys liked this and look forward to another chapter just as I do.**

 **Vulcran:** I will. Whenever I can.

 **seruis:** You and me both.

 **MRClay :** Thank you good sir.

 **Cf96:** Thanks.

 **Guest:** Thanks.

 **BraveSeeker3:** I am glad you think so. It's something I was hoping for. Sorry I kept you waiting for so long.

 **Thank you all for your support, fave, follow, review, whatever you want and as always, have fun reading and have a great day. Happy Spring Break everyone.**


	6. 5 Malevolence

It's nice to have taken some time to rest after dealing with the Hutt's mission but no rest for us in the least. Speaking of my training, the clones were all a bit confused and weirded out on a Jedi asking them for help with blaster training but thankfully when the opportunity presents itself, Captain Rex or Commander Cody were happy to give me some tips and pointers for blaster use. Afterall, what better way of getting blaster training than from troopers who've been literally grown for combat.

Since I lost my lightsaber, making a new one was the top priority my master placed on my list but with how the war is going, their isn't much time for me to make a new one, not to mention the parts, including the kyber crystals, are in drastically short supply. The Jedi would also give spare temporary lightsabers to Jedi who've lost theirs and waiting to make a new one but those two aren't in a large stock back at the academy. While the lightsaber is basically a Jedi's life, my blaster training with the clones has proven I'm still capable so until we find the opportunity for me to get my new crystal, or at least a spare lightsaber, blasters are my weapon at this point. Especially with some things that have happened that have severely limited some of the Republic's movements.

Several things have happened since we were able to secure an agreement with the Hutts. Namely the first being how Master Yoda was able to secure the alliance of the Toydaria system, further improving the Republic's movements in Hutt space but the most important and what focuses most on what we need to deal with is this mystery weapon that has cropped up. Something has been annihilating whole Republic fleets for weeks now and because of how many we've been losing, and the fact no one is left alive from the attacks, Republic movements have been severely limited for fear of losing anyone to the weapon. That's one reason why I can't go to planet Ilum to get a new crystal. All movements have been restricted to key locations that are of the utmost importance to the war effort.

The mystery of the Separatist weapon was eventually uncovered though but at the loss of three more of our cruisers. Master Plo-Koon was sent to the Abregado system to investigate reports of the mysterious weapon before we lost contact with him shortly after. Ahsoka was distraught at the idea of Master Plo possibly being killed and wanted nothing more than to go and investigate the Master Jedi's location. I'm not surprised how much she wanted to make sure he was alright because of her history with him. It was he after all that brought her to the Academy in the first place, in which I am grateful for him bringing me my closest friend to grow up and train with. After saving Master Plo, finding out the weapon is a massive cruiser equipped with a Ion cannon that disables ships and a ton of laser cannons and turbolasers, and after a successful bombing run by Master Skywalker, Master Plo and Ahsoka with Shadow Squadron, the Malevolence has been severely crippled and is on the run from our cruisers. My master and I stand on the bridge as our ships move ahead full speed and every single one of the turbolasers that has view range of the Malevolence open fire across all three of our cruisers. The secret medical facility we had in this sector is already well out of range from the retreating warship so all we need to focus on right now is annihilating that monstrosity, and hopefully the droid General along with it.

"After how many defenseless ships General Grievous has been destroying, it's nice to see him and that ship defenseless and on the run for a change." I comment as our guns continue to not let up.

"That may be so but we still have to destroy it. Commander, what is the damage level to the enemy ship?" My master asks the clone commander a lower level below us.

"She's lost a primary shield and stabilizers. But the ship is so massive, it can take all the fire our cannons can give it." The clone commander of the ship informs us. The thing is massive compared to ours so it's going to take a little while to properly take it down but without its Ion cannon, it's done for essentially.

"We may need some back up to finish it off." I comment

"That's why we're here."

At the new but familiar voice, we turn around to see the Jedi members of the strike force coming up to us. "Anakin, good to see you back in one piece."

"Always Master." Master Skywalker replies to my master as I walk up to Ahsoka and Master Plo.

"Khotoyah, Master Plo. Ahsoka." I greet the both of them in the Kel Dor's language. _'I'm glad Ahsoka's been teaching me some of the language.'_

"Khotoyah, Matthew. I see your getting better in learning my people's language." Master Plo replies and compliments me.

I smile at that before gesturing them forward. "Some here and there. The greeting I've gotten down on point but I still got a long way to go before I can even think to hold a conversation."

"Don't worry, I'll get you there eventually." Ahsoka says as she places a hand on my shoulder.

"Thanks." I reply as we all are now at the window.

"Anakin, were you able to contact Master Luminara?" My master asks him.

"Yes, Master. She's busy with a fleet of separatist reinforcements nearby. She won't be able to give us support until she's turned them away."

"Then we'll have to make due with what we have." With that sentiment from my master, all the ships in our fleet continue to rain laser shots on that behemoth. "Admiral, status report."

"They're not attempting to jump to hyperspace." Admiral Yularen, which I think is cool that he's not a clone, informs us. "Their hyperdrive must be damaged." He surmises.

"This is our chance. All ships, target the bridge, maximum firepower." My master orders and everyone does so.

Ahsoka and I move forward to examine the control readings we have of the entire battle as way for us to do at least something useful while we stand here. I continue to have a grinning smile in slight satisfaction as this monstrosity that has been hounding the Republic is completely defenseless and at our mercy. "We're almost there. Just a little more." I comment until I hear something from Ahsoka's side of the console.

"Huh? What the- Mat, check this out." Ahsoka calls me over in confusion. "What does this look like to you?"

Leaning in close to the screen, I see what's got her confused. A new signal suddenly popped up near the enemy ship. "Is that a ship signal?"

"Yeah. Master, I'm picking up a signal near the enemy vessel. Something just came out of hyperspace." She informs everyone out loud.

"Enemy reinforcements?" Master Skywalker guesses but its wrong as a closer look I see what exactly the signal is.

"No. It looks like…" She trails off as she looks at me.

' _This… can't be right.'_ I shake my head in disbelief before looking back at everyone. "The ship… its got a Naboo transponder."

"Gunners, stand down. What in blazes are they doing out here?"

"You two, contact that ship." Master Skywalker orders us to do and we do it. I key in the comm while Ahsoka speaks to whoever is piloting said ship.

"Naboo cruiser, identify yourself."

"This is senator Amidala."

"Padme? What are you doing out here?" Master Skywalker quickly and worriedly asks the senator.

"I was sent on a special mission. The senate was told the banking clan wanted to negotiate a treaty." She tells us as her form comes in the way of the holotransmitter.

"Get out of there as fast as you can!" Before she can even think to do what Master Skywalker requests, the senators transmission form begins to cut out as something happens. "Padme, what's happening?" A quick look on the readings shows her ship drifting dangerously close to the enemy.

"I'm being pulled inside the droid cruiser by a tractor beam. I will not be made a separatist bargaining chip. Continue your attack. You must destroy this monstrous ship!" She says and almost orders us with firm conviction, willing to sacrifice herself to make sure that thing is taken down before her transmission cuts off entirely. _'I'm not one to want to sacrifice innocent lives to destroy the enemy, but if that thing gets away, way more lives are going to be taken.'_ Logically, sacrificing the senators life to destroy that thing along with General Grievous is a fair price. What's right, its not.

Thankfully I don't have to make the call as I look at Master Skywalker who seems to struggle really hard and mentally debating whether to continue or stop the assault. "Admiral, order our ships to stop firing." While in the long run, it may not be logical, but it's a good thing to do. The Admiral signals for everyone of our ships to stop firing and after a few seconds of firing, eventually our cannons all halt but we continue to follow. As soon as we do, Master Skywalker turns around and begins leaving.

"Where do you think you're going?" My master asks a departing Skywalker.

"Somebody has to save her skin." Master Skywalker simply replies without stopping.

"I thought you might say that." My master tiredly says as he follows too, leaving the rest of us here on the bridge.

"There he goes again, craving adventure and excitement." Master Plo comments on the somewhat brash Jedi Master of Ahsoka's.

"You get used to it." Ahsoka simply as we watch the both of them go. I let out a sigh before someone taps my shoulder. "You better go with them."

"What, you think so?" I ask and look at Ahsoka.

"Come on. I already went on a dangerous bombing mission. Now it's time for you to go on a dangerous rescue mission." She tells me as she jabs a finger to my chest. I stare at her for a second before I glance to Master Plo, who cups his chin in thought, before I smile back at Ahsoka.

"You know, that's true." I begin walking towards the door backwards. "They can use the help. I'll see you both once this whole mess is over." I wave a quick bye to them before turning around and sprinting down the hallways after the Jedi Masters.

* * *

"Do you think it's wise for him to join them on this mission? He still has yet to make a new lightsaber." Plo-Koon asks Ahsoka once Mat is gone.

"True, but he survived Ventress and an army of droids without it before. I think a small rescue mission with both his and my Master he can make due." She explains before turning fully to the Master Jedi. "Besides, I've seen him train with Rex and the clones whenever he can to better his blaster use. He's mentioned his favorite of using two blaster pistols." She mentions what he's been doing lately.

"Training with the clones you say…" Master Plo says, curious at the idea of a Jedi being trained by a clone for once. "Hmmm."

* * *

I run out the elevator and immediately look around the hanger to try to find my Master and Skywalker. While I don't see them personally, I do see Master Skywalkers junker ship, the Twilight as he mentioned it's to be called, engines turn on. It's pretty much the only ship that we have on standby that can be used for this slight stealth mission so I book it to the ship. As soon as I run up the loading ramp, it closes behind me. "Uh-oh. Better quickly ask him." I move through the ship until I find the door heading into the bridge. "Master!" I say just as the door opens and my Master looks back at me with wide-eyes. "Request permission to— Whoa!" Suddenly I am thrown to the ground behind me as the ships takes off and lurches forward. I groan as I get up from the ground and move into the doorway again. "To… join… the mission." I sheepishly ask.

"Mat, what are you doing here?!" My master asks surprised at my presence.

"I believe he asked to join our mission, Master. Oh well, we're already out the cruiser. Guess he's joining us." Master Skywalker says nonchalantly as he pilots us out the cruiser.

"Anakin, I did not agree to bring him along. What are you even doing here?" My master asks the question to me.

"I wanted to ask you if I could join you but after stopping to pick up my blasters. I just barely caught you in this ship when the ramp closed behind me and lifted up." I say as I gesture to the two DC-17 blasters on my hips. Like with Rex, he favors the use of the two blaster pistols when he can while Cody prefers mid to long range fire from the short DC-15s carbine and the A blaster rifle. Seeing as how this engagement is going to be in the confines of a ship, short range is better, ergo the 17's.

"Lighten up, Master. This'll be the perfect chance for him to get some more experience in the field." Master Skywalker proposes but my master isn't as convinced.

"He doesn't even have a replacement lightsaber yet." My master counters but Master Skywalker doesn't seem perturbed.

"So? There have been plenty of Jedi who've lost their lightsabers and were still able to fight. Remember back on Geonosis?" As soon as he says that, my master rolls his eye and leans back in his seat.

"Oh don't bring that up."

"Wasn't that when you two plus the senator were captured and forced to fight in an arena?" I ask. They both turn and look at me with questioning looks. "I do my research on who my Master is going to be. Plus the whole thing was pretty well-known."

"Yes well, that's true." My master replies before he gets a sly smile on his face and turns to his former student. "In fact, how is it that you had lost your lightsaber, Anakin?"

Master Skywalker gets a nervous look on his face as he remembers something that I don't think he wants brought up. "O-oh… well I don't think your Padawan needs to know about—"

"He let it get cut in half on a conveyor belt."

"My arm was stuck!"

"And let's not forget before that when you dropped after landing on that assassins speeder."

"W-well, yeah but I did manage to find her!"

' _I feel like a third wheel here.'_ I can't help but think as they talk back and forth with each other. My view switches between the two of them as they continue to speak and recount past events and trying to reason why they happened though. Looking forward, I get nervous as I watch us drifting dangerously close to the Malevolence. "Uhh, Masters?"

"Come now Anakin—"

"Master please don't—"

"Watch it!" I yell out and grab the controls over Master Skywalkers hands and jerk the ship to the side, away from the deadly ship we are trying to stealthily land on and no trying to let them know we are coming. They immediately stop talking as the ship jerks to the side and Master Skywalker is able to regain control and focuses on flying again.

Both masters are gripping their seats a little tightly after the sudden jerking motion. "… Thank you Mat." Master Skywalker thanks me once he gets the ship under control.

"No problem."

"Let's be careful from now on. If they spot us, we'll be pulverized." My master advices since we almost crashed into the behemoth.

"They're too busy repairing the ship. They don't have time to notice us." Master Skywalker is pretty confident in that ideal and while I like it, hopefully the enemy shares the same thoughts. Or programming in some cases.

"Subtlety has never been one of your strong points, Anakin."

"Everything I know I learned from you, Master."

"Is that something I should expect in my training?"

"Yes."

"No." Master Skywalker agrees with my question but at the same time my master, my teacher, doesn't. They both look at each other before shaking their heads and going back to getting us to that ship. Soon enough, thanks to Master Skywalkers focused flying, we eventually come to the emergency hatch of the ship and dock on it.

"Anakin, you're crazy. Spinning is not flying." My master comments about his flying as we ride the elevator up to the entrance into the ship.

"But it's a good trick."

"We do not want to be spotted." Just as my master says that, the door opens and there are two B1 droids there who are very surprised to see us.

"I knew it! It's them!"

"Ohhh, no."

*Pew*Pew*

Both droids lose their heads as two blaster bolts take their heads off. Both Masters turn back to see me with both my DC-17 blaster pistols out. I holster them soon after and nod forward. "We're clear."

"Nice one." Master Skywalker compliments me before we walk forward into the enemy ship. "You stay here, R2." He quickly commands the astromech droid to do while we continue on ahead. I keep one of my hands on my blaster in case we suddenly run into trouble in these hallways but we are forced to stop when Master Skywalker gets a call on his communicator. "Yes?"

"Master, we've found the senator. I'm patching her through." Ahsoka calls in before she gets cut off.

"Padme?" Master Skywalker asks before he is answered to his slight relief.

"Anakin!"

"Are you all right? Where are you?" He asks concerned.

"On the lower levels. I'm fine, but I don't know for how long. Droids are everywhere."

"Obi-Wan, his Padawan and I are on board too."

"What?! What are you doing here?" She asks loudly and very surprised. Supposedly I guess she was expecting the fleet to have continued opening fire on the Malevolence but we didn't, definitely not with her on-board.

"We came to get you off this ship. Ahsoka, how can we get to the senator?" Master Skywalker asks his Padawan.

"According to our scans, there seems to be a larger open area in the center of the ship. It should be halfway between the two of you."

"Open area? Wonder what that is." I ask as I look at my master, who shrugs in return.

"We're on our way. Did you hear that, Padme?"

"I'll be there." With the connection cut off, we know our destination and make our way to where we need to go. A few twists and turns, running down long hallways but eventually we make it to what the open area is. Once we see it do my eyes widen and see just what it is.

"Hooolllyyy… this thing has its own rail transit system!" I exclaim loudly in surprise. Easily this thing is bigger than any other ship in the entire Republic fleet but I had no idea that it had to employ a literal transit train system to all sections of the ship as each train carries supplies and materials to no doubt keep this thing in working order. In several places and sections of the open train area do I see many rails destroyed and broke with a few trains destroyed here and there. The trains are working overtime to keep this thing functioning considering its been hit pretty hard thanks to Master Skywalker and Shadow Squadrons crippling attack on the Ion cannon. This whole thing is a feat of engineering, from the Ion weapon capable of disabling any cruiser ship in one hit, to the size, train system, and to top it all off the hundreds upon hundreds of turbolasers that can put down more firepower than any other ship is something to behold, and fear. As much as I would love to examine it, check it out and so on, I'm feeling much more satisfaction for this monstrosity to be nothing more than a lifeless floating husk of its former self from all the clone lives it took since it first sprung up.

"Wow. Never seen this before on a ship." Master Skywalker comments as well on the engineering. If I remember correctly, I believe he was regarded by pretty much everyone as being one of the best pilots in the Republic Army and Jedi Order so I shouldn't be surprised he has a fascination with ships as well.

"Yes though while impressive, we're still going to destroy it once the we get the senator off of it. Speaking of, I don't see her, Anakin." My master states, focusing on the matter at hand. _'Fawn over weapons later, save the hostage now.'_

"She's here, master. I sense it." Without any indication to find the senator, we are forced to simply wait and watch for any signs of her. "There!" Not even a minute passes before we spot and hear several blaster bolts go off from a level below our own. We see the senator and her protocol droid run from the droids while she fires back.

"Let's go, Mat." My master says as the two of them ignite their blades and jump forward. Clutching one of my blasters, I too jump and run just behind them until we all land on a moving cargo train heading for the senator.

* * *

While the Jedi ride the cargo train to where their objective is, a trio of B1 droids come to the open area on patrol and immediately spot the Jedi riding the train that's passing their position. "Look, Jedi." One droid of the trio says as they spot the three Jedi moving on the train.

"Fire!" The second one orders.

"No, wait." The third tries to stop them but it's too late. It's friends fire once and it's enough for the lightsaber wielding Jedi to deflect the shots right back at the droids. "I knew that was a bad idea." The surviving droid moans after seeing the others taken down so quickly and easily by their own shots. When he turns back to the Jedi on the train, he spots the younger Jedi aiming a blaster at him and just as he expects to be taken offline, he lowers the weapon and turns around as they leave well out of range.

The droid has no idea how lucky he was.

* * *

"Why didn't you shoot?" Master Skywalker asks.

"He was just one droid. Not much reason for me to shoot him you know." I answer.

"Quite right." My master agrees. Truthfully the reason why I decided not to shoot the droid was, well, I kind of feel he may have deserved to live. The main reason why I feel that was because he wasn't as stupid as his two now destroyed partners. While they blindly fired at us, the two Jedi next to me deflected their shots right back at them but not him because he didn't fire. That small action, or lack thereof, kind of deserves for him to live… at least for now. If he shoots us later on of course we'll destroy him but for now, we have an objective to complete. "Besides, we have bigger things to worry about." My master says as he points to the senator and her droid down below. They both jump off and land on another cargo train but the gold droid bounces off it and lands on another one further down.

"Padme!" Master Skywalker yells and jumps far onto a lower moving train to get to the senator.

Next what happens further complicates things as a B2 battle droid launches a plasma blast further down the tracks the senator is on, destroying the rail tracks completely. "That's not good." I mutter and get ready to go down to help but my master grabs my shoulder to stop me.

"Patience young one. You'll see Anakin is versed in… adapting to certain situations." My master comments and informs me. With his arm still on me, we watch as the senator jumps to Master Skywalker but before she can fall to her death, he uses the force to carry her to him safely. "See."

"Oh, nice. You were right, Master."

"He may be bold but he is resourceful." He comments about his old student before calling out to them. "Nice catch! I'll fetch the droid!" He yells to them before turning to me. "Go with them."

"Really, Master?" I ask curiously.

"The Senator was the main reason for us being here. Couldn't hurt to give them some backup while I grab the droid."

' _I can't really fault the idea.'_ I nod at the reasoning. "You got it Master. I'll see you back at the ship!" I say to him just as I jump off the train and bounce to the lower levels.

"Be careful!" My master calls out as I descend. I bounce off of lower rails and other trains until just before the train Master Skywalker and the senator are on passes through a tunnel, I land on the last car and roll into a crouch. "Oof! Ouch. Gotta work on my jumping." I mutter and begin making my way to the other passengers.

"Anakin, I got separated from your droid." My masters voice comes on over our communicators as I continue to carefully jump up and over many boxes and between cars. Seeing as how the train is going at high speed, the wind resistance is kind of against me so I have to be careful, less I be thrown off or hit something.

"Ugh, I'll take care of it."

"I've sent Matthew down to help you get the Senator out of here."

"What?! C'mon, Master! I don't need any help."

"Sorry, Master Skywalker!" I shout as I jump off a car and land on the one he and the senator are on, in which they are really close together for some reason. Gonna chalk it up to her being grateful. They look at me as I walk up to them. "Kind of too late for me to go back now."

"Uhh, fine." He mutters before keying in his comm again. "We'll meet you back at the Twilight then."

"No, we can't leave yet." The senator suddenly speaks up. "I overheard Grievous. Their hyperdrive is almost repaired." She gives us some grave news. Overtime we can whittle the ship until its destroyed but if the hyperdrive is repaired, then the Malevolence can escape, get repaired and eventually terrorize Republic space again.

"I'm already headed in that direction, so I'll make certain that the hyperdrive stays offline." My master informs us on our comlinks.

"Roger that, Master. We're getting you out of here." He tells the senator before calling someone else. "R2, I need you to help me find 3PO. He's on the rail jet." He calls and informs R2. I can't really understand the droid myself too good but thankfully Master Skywalker is well-versed in it. "I know. I know. He does. Look, just find him for me, and I'll be there soon." He turns back to us. "Alright, the train should be stopping soon. When we stop, we get off and should be able to work our way to where 3P0." Master Skywalker says and once he finishes talking, the trains does come to a stop. "Alright, let's get going."

"Right behind you." The senator and I follow Master Skywalker as we hopefully try to find the droid.

* * *

The bridge of the Negotiator, Obi-wan Kenobi's prime Jedi cruiser in the Republic army, follows the Malevolence at a steady pace and while they could easily fire upon it, not while their fellow Jedi and allies are still aboard the vessel.

Jedi Master Plo-kook continues to monitor the ship with Admiral Yularen nearby and Padawan Ahsoka Tano impatiently waiting, if the tapping of her fingers on the console is anything to go by. Master Plo sees the younglings impatience for waiting from the tapping and the scowl on her face. "Patience, little 'soka. They will return soon enough."

"Sorry, Master Plo." She apologizes and straightens up and crosses her arms. "I just don't like standing here doing nothing. If the senator wasn't captured, it'd at least be a nice show to see that thing finally be destroyed but instead, we can only stand here and hope that everyone makes it out okay." She voices her concern on the whole matter. While before she was alright with the idea that her friend Mat would join their masters in a rescue mission on that giant ship, now that he's already on the enemy flaming warship does she feel concern for both him and the others.

"Yes, while it may be infuriating to be here and not able to do anything to help out our comrades, you must have patience and trust that they will be able to accomplish the mission and return to us safely and without harm." The Kel Dor Jedi advices what they have to do. It may not be the most glamorous of things to do but it's the best they can do right now.

Ahsoka looks at her old friend for a little while before sighing and staring back at the Malevolence. "I hope your right Master Plo."

"Even though General Skywalker may sometimes be a bit… brash in his actions. He almost always comes out on top of the situation." Admiral Yularen adds his own opinion on the matter, gaining the Jedi's attention. "And with General Kenobi and General Morrow there to lend aid, we should expect them back no worse for wear. When they'll be back though… depends on how big of an escape Skywalker wants to make."

The two Jedi don't really fault the thinking as they turn back to the view windows. All the while, Ahsoka has a small smile on her face. _'Mat's resourceful too. I'm sure he'll be fine.'_

* * *

"MOVE! MOVE! MOVE! I'll cover you!" I yell loudly before I lay down covering firing for Master Skywalker and the senator as we run from the squad of droids that found us. As soon as the both of them run past me, Skywalker deflecting blaster shots back at the droids, the senator stops at the corner and fires a few shots at our enemies, allowing me to move and shoot across the hallway to my friends. As soon as we turn the corner and move down another hallway, Master Skywalker and the senator move behind some cover on the right side of the hallway while I on the opposite side of them.

The senator and I pop out of our covers every so often to take down as many of the droids as we can while Master Skywalker calls my master. I still use both my blasters while she uses her Naboo blaster pistol. "Obi-Wan? Come in, Obi-Wan."

"Anakin, I'm afraid Grievous is on to us." My master replies.

"Yeah, we noticed." He says obviously.

"Kind of busy here Master!" I too yell into the commlink quickly before I pop out and nail a B1's head off before going back in.

"We'll rendezvous back at the Twilight. The fleet must engage the-ZZt!" Before my master can finish talking, his voice cuts off.

"Master? Master!" I try to call him but the transmission was indeed cut.

"Obi-Wan? Come in. Obi-Wan!"

"What's wrong?!" The senator asks.

"They're jamming us." He tells us what they're most likely doing. I go to shoot again but the remaining B2 droids are getting really close now and I'm forced back in as shot nearly grazes me.

"Uhh, Master Skywalker? Little help." I call him for some backup now that he's not talking to anyone anymore. He nods and runs out where he blocks the first set of blaster shots before cutting down one of the B2 droids. With their focus on him, I pop out and take down a couple droids while he finishes the last of them off. In no time at all, we are free and clear of all droid opposition.

"That might buy us some time."

"I suppose you have a plan." The senator surmises as we walk out of cover.

"Follow me." Without any indication of giving us any details, we simply follow him. When we go back the way we were going the way before, I can't help but keep glancing my way to the senator. More specifically, the blaster she's been using.

"Anakin, the Padawan keeps staring at me." As soon as she says that do I realize I was staring at her much longer than I intended.

"Mat, quit checking out the senator." My eyes widen and I blanch at the insinuation before shaking my head no as well as my hands.

"N-no! No no no no! That's not what I was staring at it was—" I stop my yelling before I take a deep breath before staring directly at the senator and pointing at her hand. "Senator, is that a ELG-3A Naboo blaster pistol?"

"Oh, yeah. I should have known." I hear Master Skywalker but I ignore him in favor of hearing the senators answer. She actually looks at me a little surprised before holding up the weapon for a clearer.

"Actually yes, it is. How did you know?" She asks curiously.

"Out of all the Padawans Obi-wan could have gotten, he got the one that has a passion for weapons." Master Skywalker proceeds to comment about me first.

"Oh, I guess that explains why he prefers to use blasters instead of his lightsaber."

"Uhh." I sulk at the memory of how I lost mine in the first place.

"Not… by choice Pad- Uh Senator."

"… Oh." The senator seems to somewhat get what Master Skywalker means, as well as my depressed attitude, before she stops talking.

Once I bring myself out of my funk after a few seconds do I turn to her again. "Senator, could I see your weapon for a second?"

"Now?" She asks a little surprised, no doubt because we are in the middle of an enemy battleship so she doesn't want to be defenseless when we run into more enemy's.

"Don't worry, we're clear for now. Besides he won't stop looking at your weapon until he has a chance to look at it with his own two hands." Thankfully Master Skywalker backs me somewhat.

She look hesitantly at the weapon before handing it towards me with the handle. I holster my guns and take the weapon in both hands, carefully examining it. "Thank you so much." I get a feel for the weapon as I feel for its grip with one hand and rolling it around. "Wow. So small yet powerful. The barrel itself looks like it could easily snap off but it won't. Light too." I begin to comment about the weapon for the first time I've held one.

"I've never seen a Jedi so amazed by blasters before."

"Join the club. Even the clones are surprised."

"The clones? Why would they be—"

"Intruders! Bla—"

*Pew*Pew*Pew*

As soon as we pass into an intersection, we come across a small patrol of four B1 droids. Before they can start blasting us, or even finish the sentence, I fire three precise shots in rapid succession right at them, nailing three of them in the head before they fall over on the fourth one behind them. Master Skywalker didn't even have a chance to turn on his lightsaber before the droids fall to ground offline. Both he and the senator stare at me in surprise at my accuracy and quick response to the enemy patrol that almost got the jump on us. "That's the thing you two. Most people, especially the Jedi, see blasters as being clumsy, easy to use where anyone can use them with barely any training. I don't see it as that." I casually begin to say as I slowly walk up to the droids on the floor. "While there is some truth to that, it takes skill and finesse to truly be the deadliest person with a blaster against all kinds of opponents." I stop in front of the fourth droid covered by one of its friends. It tries to move the body but I slowly move the senators blaster over its head and fire.

*Pew*

Just like its friends, it falls offline without any other problem. "In fact, I believe the bounty hunter Jango Fett was able to kill some Jedi with his blasters." I mention that little bit as I walk back over to the senator. That was something that got my interest when I was looking up the various blaster weapons, vehicles and artillery. The Jedi, or any force wielder with a lightsaber really, have been known far and wide for their ability to be quick enough to deflect blaster bolts but it's pretty much the first time I've heard of a non-force user capable of shooting a Jedi dead. "That goes to show that even the famed blaster deflecting lightsaber wielders can be killed with a blaster, one-on-one." _'Droids don't count, or multiple people taking on one Jedi.'_ I think as I aim the blaster at the senator for a second before I twirl her blaster in my hand until the grip is facing her. She stares at me with wide eyes before taking her weapon back. I turn to Master Skywalker and see him staring at me with a smirk and crossed arms. I nod and pull out both my own blasters back into my hands. "Let's keep moving. This ship isn't going to destroy itself."

"On that you are right." He agrees and goes back to leading us to where we need to go.

* * *

Several minutes pass as continue to move in silence to where we're going until we eventually find ourselves in an elevator. The elevator is a little cramped but we manage nonetheless. Master Skywalker still hasn't told us where we're going but as soon as the door opens, find out.

"-The good news- uhh…" Whatever the droid was going to say, it peters off as he spots us. Master Skywalker runs in, lightsaber on as he begins cutting down the pilot droids here on the bridge. What he doesn't see is the two B2 droids moving in from behind him.

"Anakin!"

"Master watch out!" As soon as the senator and I call out, one of the droids turns to us. I quickly aim at them but instead of going for the body where most of its armor is on, I go for the legs. Both my shots hit its right leg, making the droid topple to the side as its blaster shots intended for us go off and hit the elevator wall above and behind us. While Master Skywalker slices the other droid in half, the senator and I perforate the downed droid until its dead.

'Ever since I've known you, you've been playing with droids." The senator comments to the older Jedi.

"I used to put them together. Now I only take them apart."

"Nothing wrong with that." I comment as well.

"So where do we start?" The senator asks once we see that we have cleared the bridge of the enemy

"First we need to get rid of these droids so they won't know we were here. I'm gonna hotwire the ship, give Grievous a little surprise." He quickly gives us a summary of what he has planned as he sits down on one of the pilot seats and begins fiddling with it.

"I guess I'll clean up the droids then." The senator figures out that she has to do the menial task of clearing the droid bodies.

"Ehhh, don't worry senator. I got you." I offer my help to her since that's really all the only other thing I can do right now.

"Thanks… Mat, was it?" She asks my name and I nod.

"Yes, correct. Padme, right?"

"That's right."

"Nice to meet you ma'am."

"Likewise." We exchange handshakes and pleasantries while we have the chance before we start working gathering the scrap metal. Thankfully there are about a half dozen droid bodies here for us to gather so the B1's are light enough for us to move individually but we need to work together to move the B2's without much effort. Soon enough that's what we're doing as we both lean down to pick up one of the big droids.

"So senator, you and Master Skywalker seem close. Do you two have history with each other?" I ask, wanting to strike up conversation and solve my own curiosity.

*Slam*

"Ow!" I wish I didn't because what the senator was doing was picking up the B2 droid and when I was going to assist, I asked my question and I'm not sure if it was the right time because I now have the dead droid slammed onto my foot.

"Oh! Sorry!"

"What's going on back there?"

"Nothing, Anakin! M-My hand just slipped." The senator quickly dissuades Master Skywalker from taking an interest in just what happened. Once I've stopped hoping on my foot does she come up to me to apologize. "I am soooo sorry. I didn't mean to drop it on you. I'm sorry."

"Ahhh… alright. I get it. Sorry for asking the question." I grumble, still a little ticked off at having gotten hurt like that.

"No no its not that I just…" She sighs before pulling me a little distance away so we can speak without Master Skywalker hearing us. "Alright, you just… surprised me is all with the question."

"Why? You two seem pretty… friendly with each other and I figured you knew each other more than just simple acquaintances."

"What makes you think that?" She asks.

"Well, for you both refer each other on a first name basis. My master and Master Skywalker do that too but that's because they were former master and apprentice. I don't know about you two so I was just curious. If you don't want to talk, fine then so we can get back to cleaning." I offer for her and I'm about to go but she stops me.

"No no, its fine. Just wasn't expecting it." She sheepishly says and gestures for me to move back to her and I do. "Your right we do know each other. We're… close friends since a long time ago. Since before he even became a Jedi." I look at her surprised at the info. _'Before he was a Jedi? Wow, that was long ago.'_ "Before I even became a senator, I was the Queen of Naboo for a time and during when the Confederacy was starting to become a threat, I met Anakin on his home planet Tatooine when our ship was damaged and after winning a pod race, he joined us when Master Qui-Gon Jinn was able to arrange his freedom when he found out he was force sensitive." We glance at the working Jedi before looking back at each other. "Since he was nine-years-old, he was always nice and supportive of me during my reign as queen, charming too if you can believe it, and he helped me when I needed it, mostly guard duty for some assignments but we're… longtime friends." She finishes saying with a smile. I continue to stare at her for a few more seconds before looking at him again who's still typing away. I smile before nodding to the senator.

"Thank you, Senator. It's nice to have some context at least and for you to tell me that."

"No problem."

"Now, let's go ahead and finish cleaning up the mess. As soon as Master Skywalker finishes doing whatever he's doing, we're outta' here."

"Right." She agrees with me and we go back to cleaning up the mess. While we're working though, I can't help but get the feeling she wasn't telling me exactly everything that was the truth about their relationship with each other but this was all mostly for my curiosity so I guess I shouldn't really get into it.

A few minutes later, we're down to the last droid and Master Skywalker is finished. "That ought to do it. How's the housecleaning going?" He asks.

"Nnnnn! Gah!" I shove the B2 into the door with the rest and close it before nodding to the senator.

"Done. Let's get out of here." She says. We go back into the cramped elevator and head down to the floor that's has the emergency hatch we originally used. We run back to the ship in relative silence and thankfully without any problems as either we took care of the patrols or they've been diverted elsewhere to look for us. Either way it's a clear way to go. "Wait, what about 3PO?" The senator suddenly asks as we stop at a sliding.

"Oh crap. Your droid. Right we forgot about him." I say as well.

"How are we going to find him?" She asks worried about him.

"Don't worry. I'm sure he'll turn up." As soon as Master Skywalker says that, he opens the door and we are met with two droids. "3PO, what are you doing? Don't just stand there." He tells the gold protocol droid along with R2 and starts running. "Let's get back to the ship." We continue to follow him this time with two new tag alongs.

We move at a brisk pace through more hallways and turns but not as fast as we were before because the droids are kind of slow, 3PO especially. Nonetheless things are still quiet until we turn one last corner to our ship. What that is is the lone droid we run into.

"Ohhhh noooo." The B1 droid actually moans in… sadness as his entire frame sulks amazingly. Even as Master Skywalker, ignites his lightsaber and runs up to the droid, he doesn't even turn his blaster on the Jedi or try to attack.

"Wait!" I shout. As soon as I say that Master Skywalker stops his blade from hitting the droid above his head, who flinches from the impending hit.

"What?" He impatiently and slightly annoyed asks me still in his stopped position. I don't answer as I move up to the front and push him back and away from the droid. Once he steps back away, much to his and the other confusion, I stare intently at the droid while the others watch.

"… Why didn't you try to shoot us?" I ask, my curiosity peaked after noticing that thing about the droid.

"What's the point. You're Jedi. I can't blast you by myself." He answers in a depressed tone. His words surprise at that kind of thinking. I'd kind of expect the hopelessness from an organic soldier but I thought all droids were programmed for absolute obedience to destroy their programmed enemies. After a tense few seconds of me staring at him, I ask another question.

"Were you the droid back at the train area who didn't shoot when your two friends did and were killed by their own blaster shots?"

"Yes."

"…" Again, I stare back at him until I suddenly throw my hand out and force pull the droids blaster into my hands. He was completely surprised by that so he was able to hold onto it and it goes into my hands easy enough. I turn the weapon around on him. "What's your serial number? Or designation? Or whatever?" I ask. I know clones also have their own numbers as well when their born but I'm not sure exactly what it is for the droids.

"Uhhh, B1-218." He tells me.

I nod at that before looking to the side to see we are next to the escape pods. I walk over and hit the button to open one of the pods before turning back to the droid. "Get in."

"What?"

"What?"

"What?"

Three simultaneous questions of surprise can be heard at the same time, from the droid and the other humans of my group. Instead of answering, I offer an alternative. "Get in or I'll shoot you." I aim the E-5 blaster at him.

"Okay okay." He concedes and raises his arms before he steps in.

"Hold it." I stop him once he takes a step in. Stepping back, I smile at him. "Sorry about this." I toss the blaster at him.

"Huh? Wha!" Before he can question anymore, I force push him into the escape pod and punch the button to close the pod. "Wait a few minutes! Then launch it!" I yell against the door before turning back to my incredibly confused friends. "Alright, let's go." I take off down the hallway to where the Twilight is docked. Soon enough I hear the others following me. In just another turn we make it back to the elevator that leads to our ship.

"Power up the engines, R2." Master Skywalker tasks the astromech to do.

"Master, we made to the ship. Where are you?" I call my master on the comm.

"Hold the ship!" Instead of on the comm, my master comes running around the corner with a barrage of blasters nipping at his heels. Soon the droids come around and start firing at us too.

"Master, come on!" I yell as I open fire around him in an effort to take out the droids. Unfortunately, the droids chasing him are of the Droideka models and their shields prevent my shots from doing anything to them. Still that doesn't stop me from trying to cover him somewhat until Master Skywalker uses the force to carry some boxes in front of their firing range, preventing them killing us and giving us the chance to descend back into the ship.

"I'll contact the fleet." My master says as he and Master Skywalker take the pilot seats.

"R2, release the docking clamp." The droid goes ahead and does that and unlocks us from the ship before we begin traveling away from the Malevolence. We don't get far though for we are soon attacked by droid fighters on our tail.

"We got company." I say.

"Time for some clever tricks, Anakin." My master comments to his former student.

"That's what I was thinking." He replies and the senator and I have to hold on a bit as he swerves us around the incoming laser shots. Thankfully, we have some slight cover as our cruisers begin to open fire on the enemy forces again now that we are not on the ship anymore. Still we are being hammered by the enemy fighters. "You know, we have guns. You can shoot back any time." He points out an obvious truth that we should have realized before.

My master stares at his former student before turning to me with an encouraging smile. "Mat, care to try your hand?"

I smile at my masters words and pop my fingers in preparation. I reach up and grab the manual control view range for the guns on this ship. "Gladly." I pull it down before I lean in and begin scanning all around until I manage to aim the gun behind us.

"You think your Padawan can do this?" I don't bother listening to Master Skywalkers question as I spot droids fighters gaining on us. Smirking, I press the buttons and watch as the gun turret on the right wing of the Twilight opens fire on them. What I take note however as I fire is the lead starfighter that's chasing us. If I remember correctly, it's the General of the droid army that's flying the Belbullab-22 starfighter and hammering our ship. I think but either way the pilot is good. It swerves out of the way of the barrage of shots but I shift the rest of my aim to vulture droids and begin taking them down one-by-one.

"I think he has this."

"Thank you, Master!" I lightly yell as I jerk to the side a little, taking down a vulture droid that was getting too close, and forcing the special ship to dodge yet again, making it miss its shots.

"Nice shot, my Padawan."

"Almost like shooting a blaster… but with a bigger gun." I comment as I continue to fire but at a steady careful pace. Timing my shots as best I can.

"Pardon me, Sir, but R2's scan of the enemy's ship indicates their hyperdrive is activating." 3PO informs us the situation. _'Guess my Master wasn't able to shut down the hyperdrive. Not surprised considering how many droids might have been waiting.'_

"Don't worry about it."

"What?" My master questions surprised and slightly confused at his former students words. I continue to fire a bit more but suddenly the ships following us turn around and begin to retreat. Once they're out of range, I shift my view to the Malevolence and to my surprise it begins to turn directly to the nearby moon. Normally you'd turn away from crashing into the moon but whatever Master Skywalker did has made the warship fly straight and crash into the moon. I tear myself away from the view screen as the ship blows up in a massive bright light. Looking out the window, I can see the explosion better without the intensity of the controls I was using.

"Woah." I mutter as I stare at the explosion far off.

"I imagine you had something to do with that." My master comments to Skywalker, who offers a smile in return.

"All part of the plan, Master." He replies and from here on, its smooth sailing back to the fleet without us being fired upon by the enemy.

My own curiosity gets the better of me though as I lean into the window and try to look around. "Hmmm." I murmur.

"Trying to find your friend?" I roll my eyes at Master Skywalkers comment but continue to search for an escape pod. Either the droid did escape and we're too far away for me to accurately see him, or he went down with the ship. I don't know I can't tell.

"Friend?" My master asks.

"Your Padawan was nice enough to throw a droid into an escape pod." The senator adds.

"Can't a guy feel sorry for a droid that was smart enough not to shoot?" I ask as I turn back to everyone. They don't answer back but simply stare at me weirdly. "Eeaah." I wave them off when they don't answer.

* * *

 **Wow, this went way longer, again, than I originally intended to do and I hope the result is to everyone's satisfaction. The main reason why I shifted past a few episodes and went right to this one was because I couldn't really come up with much other reasons for being a part of the beginning stages against the Malevolence that Mat could have much of an impact on, besides a few comments here and there. Here when he can possibly get into the heart of the warship was the best spot I could do where he could actually contribute and show his skills despite not having his lightsaber.**

 **I also tried to have a small bonding moment between Mat and Padme and to be honest... I'm not really satisfied with the conversation. I think I could have gone a bit more in-depth but I think we all know their backstory so it's why I still feel like it's somewhat incomplete. I don't know maybe it's just me but regardless I hop you all still like it.**

 **I bet some of you are also wondering why he decided to leave a droid out of all things to leave alive. To be honest, when I first saw that episode and I saw that one droid actually be smart and NOT shoot at the Jedi that could deflect their blaster fire right back at them, I kind of felt amazed and sorry for the droid that he would have died on the ship when it crashed. It's a small thing but I feel satisfied at least in that regard. It's amazing in those moments where the droids that come off as single-minded actually do something smart and amazing in the grand scheme of things.**

 **Vulcran Stormblade:** You're not wrong there. As soon as Mat gets his original back or makes a new one will his Master make sure to remind him of that little statement.

 **BraveSeeker3:** Yeah, that sucked. No Jedi likes losing their lightsaber, especially too such a surprise like that. Considering how the Jedi and clones are going to be going into battle after battle together on multiple occasions, it is always good to have some comradery with each other. While Rex is most prominent in the series of all the clones, Mat will be working alongside Cody as well but that depends on the missions he's sent on and who with.

 **RedHood001:** A lot of things have been garnering my attention lately and I'm glad you understand, even relate. I'm sure other people think the same thing but hopefully I'll be able to work on everything without some sort of delay soon enough. Until then, thank you for your compliments.

 **Cf96:** Thank you.

 **Anyway, thank you all for your continued support and keep an eye out for the next chapter in a couple weeks. I'm going to make one more chapter before I get back to working on regular updates for all my stuff. What to expect in that chapter… prepare for the Battle of Kamino.**

 **Go ahead and fav, follow, review, whatever you wish but most of all everyone, have fun reading and have a great day.**


	7. 6 Battle of Kamino

**Quick note: Apparently, Padawans attain the rank of Commander in the Republic while Jedi Knights and Masters are Generals. Thank you Guest for pointing that out. I even looked it up and their right. Seriously if theirs any inconsistencies in my stories regarding how things are supposed to go, please let me know so I can fix them. At some points I may go a bit off-canon but still I'll let you all know when I do if I can. When I can, I'll go back and correct the previous chapters but for now, let's do this.**

* * *

Taking down the Malevolence was a setback for the Separatists that we surely needed. Our movements are no longer limited or as cautious anymore so we can properly move around without fear of sudden attacks by an enemy that can kill us barely any effort on their part. The Republic is back on track in properly taking the fight to the enemy but even without their secret weapon anymore, the Separatists aren't lacking in any crazy plans to try to destroy the Republic and decimate our troops whenever they can.

Case in point has to be the new attack that took place on the Rishi moon outpost not too long ago. The outpost is an early warning tracking station that keeps an eye out around our core worlds for any enemy movements that may try to attack us. What happened on the Rishi outpost was the fact that the Separatists tried to commandeer the base in order to give a continuous all-clear signal so they can amass their fleet directly towards Kamino without any opposition to go against them. Thanks to the efforts of Rex, Cody and the survivors of the base, they were able to destroy the base, gaining our attention and move our forces to it where we were able to come smack dab in the middle of the invading Separatist armada and halt their progress cold.

That doesn't mean we're in the clear though as now the brass are paranoid to all kinds of levels on anymore plans our enemy may implement to attack the clone facility on Kamino. If we lose that place, we may as well lose the entire war as it is. No clones, no army to fight the droid army so that's why we are not taking any chances in defending that facility. It was further cemented when we intercepted a transmission from General Grievous that just proves they have another plan of attack in place. Currently, while Ahsoka is back at the academy, my master, Skywalker, Cody, Rex and I stare at the fuzzy holographic form in the middle of us.

"We are decrypting the audio, Sir." A clone technician informs us all as he works to get the image to work but mostly so we can hear what's going on in this transmission we managed to nab. Seconds later, we hear it.

"The clone planet of Kamino will be a dangerous target." _'Ventress.'_ I can't help but growl in my head at the voice of the Sith that took my weapon. _'If she's here, I'd like to get my weapon back.'_

"Just make sure you hold up Your half of the mission." General Grievous can be heard as his gravely cyborg voice can be heard. "We must stop the production of new clones If we are to win this war." As soon as Grievous finishes saying that, his form fizzles out but the message is clear as day for us.

"Kamino." Master Skywalker gravely says.

"They're going to attack our home planet." Rex states the truth of what's going to happen.

"The separatists are taking quite the chance even considering this." My master comments and he's right. We have a massive fleet protecting the planet and if the enemy doesn't have pretty much double the ships we have, their going to get scrapped.

"With all due respect, General," Rex begins to say, "If someone comes to our home, they better be carrying a big blaster."

"I concur with Captain Rex, Sir. This is personal for us clones." Cody says, agreeing with the Captains sentiments on their home.

"We'll make sure Kamino Is secure. Tell your troopers in the 501st …They're going home." Master Skywalker tells them. Rex is only a captain of the 501st in charge of Torrent Company in the battalion but he still commands a number of troops who are now going to be tasked with defending their home.

"Yes, sir." They both salute and walk off to prepare to go back home.

"This isn't going to be easy, will it Master?" I ask once they leave the bridge, in which he shakes his head no.

"When it comes to Grievous or Ventress, it never is. Especially when its such a critical target on the line." My master grimly states.

"Doesn't mean we're not going to try regardless." Master Skywalker states confidently.

"True. The Kamino cloning facility is without a doubt a vital piece of the Republics army and we must defend it no matter." My master says in agreement. Seeing the both of them firm in their beliefs to defend the clones home planet, any worry I had before is dashed away.

My eyes slowly glide over to where the hologram transmission was before that we had intercepted. I can't help but gain a small smirk as I remember one of the speakers. _'Payback Ventress.'_

* * *

Moving as fast as we can, our transport ship, an Arquitens-class light cruiser makes it to the facility on Kamino where we Jedi, plus Cody and Rexm along with his regiment of clones, disembark and are greeted by one of the native Kaminoans here on the planet along with being the Prime Minister of the people that work here, Lama Su. Along with him, Jedi Master Shaak-Ti, the Jedi stationed here to look over clone production along with overseeing their training and seeing them off to be true soldiers of the Republic comes to meet us. They come to greet us as we all stop in front of each other.

"Masters Kenobi and Skywalker, Welcome to Kamino." Master Shaak-Ti greets.

"Greetings, Generals." Lama Su offers his greetins as well but pleasantries will have to wait.

"I wish our arrival wasn't under such circumstances." My master gets right down to it. "We believe Grievous is planning a Separatist attack on Kamino."

"But the republic blockade Is far too strong. They would not dare." Lama Su doesn't really believe it but whether he believes it or not doesn't change the transmission we heard and somewhat saw.

Master Shaak-Ti gets a curious thinking look on her face at what might transpire here while the storms here on Kamino thunder momentarily.

It is a bad omen. Regardless I examine the facility around us before stepping to the side of my master. "Master, is it alright if I go with Captain Rex and Commander Cody to check out the facility. If there's going to be a fight here, I'd like to know the layout."

"That sounds like an excellent idea, my Padawan. Commander, you mind giving him a tour?" My master asks the yellow armor painted trooper.

"How 'bout it Rex?" Master Skywalker asks Rex as well.

"Yes, sir!" Both clones salute their respective leaders and wave for me to go.

"C'mon, Mat. We'll show you the layout of the place." Cody says as we begin walking away from everyone else.

"Maybe we can even show you where we're made."

"Geh!" I almost trip at that statement from Rex before righting myself in time. As I walk with them, I can help but shake my head with a smirk and point at him. "You know, if a non-clone person had said that to me, this would be very awkward."

* * *

While the trio leave, Shaak-Ti can't help but stare at the Padawan and notice some things about him not seen in other Jedi. "Master Kenobi, who was that, exactly?" She asks her fellow Jedi.

"That's Matthew Morrow. Anakin and I were both assigned Padawans for us to teach and that one preparing is mine." He informs her.

"Hmmm, okay. Now another question: why is it that he has blasters and no lightsaber?"

At that question, Obi-wan sighs and shakes his head. "He lost his original lightsaber to Ventress and hasn't had the chance to replace it. Until then he's been making do with some of the clones weapons."

"I'd say more than make do." Anakin adds his own thoughts on the Padawans skills with a blaster. "You should have seen him when he was fighting on the Malevolence. He's really gotten the hang of taking down droids with clear precision with his pistols. He's really taking to his training with the men." He finishes saying with a smile.

"The clones? Shouldn't it be you who is supposed to be training him? Not the clones?" She asks the question directed to Obi-wan, who nods at her.

"Because of this war, I haven't been able to give him as much time to train as I'd like. Obviously, I can't train him with a lightsaber since he doesn't have one yet. I have been teaching him how to act when it comes to dealing with important dignitaries and leaders but besides that and reminding him of how Jedi is supposed to act, there isn't much else to teach him in the time we have available." Obi-wan proceeds to explain as best he can to his fellow Jedi Master about his teachings since its definitely unorthodox for a Jedi to be trained by clones but he doesn't really have much choice.

Shaak-Ti glances one last time to the departing Padawan before he is out of their sight.

* * *

"Man, this is pretty big." I comment after the last hour we spent of the two clones giving me the tour of the place.

"Yeah, it is. Place kind of has to be in order to pump out the amount of men we use in the war effort." Rex says.

"That's true."

"Still, its home sweet home to each and everyone of us that are born here." Cody fondly states proudly as we continue to walk. In the time we've been going, they've gone and shown me where the barracks are, generators, the giant tank room where each clone is grown in, training rooms, DNA chamber, and the armory. Those are some of the immediate important places and locations of the facility but there are so many twists and turns, corridors, side rooms and hallways that lead to each one in different directions. Not to mention I haven't seen the hangers or the direct routes outside and such so while I have a general idea of everything, its hard to keep track of everything on such short notice.

"No kidding. Still amazes me on how well this facility operates to give us such amazing soldiers." I compliment both the men and this place period.

"Thank you, sir." Cody says but before we can continue walking with the tour, his commlink goes off making him answer it. "Cody here."

"Commander, we need you and Captain Rex in the operations center to finalize the troop layout." My master orders over the comm.

"We're on it, General. We'll be there in five." He replies.

"Master, what about me? Do you need me for anything?" I quickly ask before he shuts off the commlink.

"Not at the moment, no. You can continue to familiarize yourself with the facility in the meantime."

"You got it, Master." I pull back so Cody shuts it off. "Well, I guess the tours over." I comment a little sadly.

"Not necessarily." Rex says with a smile, making just a little confused on what he means. "Echo! Fives!" He shouts somewhere towards behind me. I turn around to see two other clones walking towards us. These aren't your average day clones as these ones have blue stripes going the length of their armors along their sides with one of them having a large hand print plastered on his chest plate. If I remember correctly, both these soldiers were also the ones that had survived the Rishi moon outpost attack. It's because of their actions along with the actions of their fallen brothers that we actually have the opportunity to defend this place. Both clones look confused before Rex nods his head for them to come over to us.

"Yes sir. What'd you need?" One of them asks.

"The Commander here needs a proper tour of the place so he's not running blind when the attack starts. Commander Cody and I are needed back at the ops center for final troop movements so you two are going to help get him familiarized with our home. Sound good?" He asks the two clones.

"Yes sir! We're on it." The other clone states as they both salute us.

"Good men. We'll see you later sir." Rex says as they begin to talk away.

"Have fun." Cody pats me on the shoulder as they both head off to do their jobs.

I turn back to the two soldiers as they salute me. "Hello Commander. I'm CT-21-0408. Echo for short." The clone with the hand print states his name.

"And I'm CT-27-5555. Fives for me." Fives gives me his name. "If you'll follow us we can—"

Before they can continue talking, I hold my hand up to stop them. "Enough with the formalities. I'm calling you guys by your names and you can call me by mine. My name is Matthew Morrow. Mat for short. It's a pleasure to meet you two." I properly greet them as I walk closer and extend my hand for them to shake. The both of them look surprised at the pleasantry towards them but smile and each shake my hand. "Now, as Rex had said, I need to get a good idea of this facility's layout so let's continue to tour shall we?"

"You got it." Echo says and gestures for us to start walking.

And so, with my new tour guides we I begin to get more familiarized with the facility and have a better layout of it all, much to my relief. As we continue to go Echo and Fives start to become more relaxed with me after telling them to drop the formalities around me. Soon enough we end up walking through some clear tube hallways that overlook a large part of the inside of the facility.

"Ah, look around, Fives. Feels like yesterday we were here, heading to target practice." Echo comments between the two as we walk with me to their left. He mentions the last part as a small group of cadet clones walk by.

"Heh, remember that?"

"Do I ever." Echo turns to me. "What about you, sir? Have memories like that when you were training? If you don't mind me asking."

I shrug my shoulders a little as I remember. "Somewhat. We would have classes and groups of us practicing on how to use the force and how to sense when blaster bolts were coming at us and the techniques to block or deflect them. As we got older did we start to have more independent training before it culminates to what I am now, the Padawan to a higher-ranking Jedi." I explain the best I can to them of training life in the Jedi temple. "Your training is always in mass and groups right?" I ask, in which they nod.

"That's right. Always working with our fellow brothers in all types of scenarios." Echo says.

"Also helps speed the training along without having to focus on each and every soldier." Fives adds. I guess since the higher ups immediately think that all the clones are the exact same, they don't think to give any sort of too much focused training. Not to mention without how long and brutal this war is going on, its preferable to get as many troops out of here as fast as they can.

"I guess your right." If theirs one thing I've seen when it comes to the clones is that at least some of them are unique in their own way. _'Sucks they can't find the more impressive clones and such during their training but we don't really have a choice without how relentless the enemy is.'_ My thoughts are interrupted as a nearby defected clone drops a load of blaster rifles.

"Hey, 99." Echo calls out to the clone.

"Ha, Echo. Fives." 99 greets them.

"You actually remember us." Fives comments in somewhat surprise.

"Oh, I remember all my brothers." 99 states and I can't help but smile at the commitment to his brothers. _'Although considering how many of them go through this place, hard to keep track really.'_ "And uhhh, who's this?" He asks once he takes note of me.

"99, this is Jedi Commander Matthew Morrow. We're giving him the tour of the place." Echo introduces me. As soon as he hears I'm basically his commanding officer, he steps to a salute as best he can given his misformed body.

"Oh! Sir, I'm so sorry."

I chuckle at the action before I wave him down. "Relax 99. No need for that around me. Just getting the lay of the place and the people that are here. Nice to meet you." I simply tell him and go to shake his hand. He relaxes when he hears that and shakes my hand.

"Thank you, sir." He looks at Echo and Fives. "Anyway, is Hevy here? Where's he?" He asks them but the sad looks they have shows it's not good news.

"There was an incident on the Rishi moon outpost." Fives begins to explain.

"He saved our lives, but he gave up his own." Echo finishes. Both 99 and I crane our heads down in sadness at the news. I know clones are meant to die in this war but it's still sad nonetheless to hear it, especially from those closest.

"Oh… Uh, I see." 99 mutters sadly as he pulls out a gold medal with green and white coloring on the cloth.

"Hevy gave you his medal?" Fives says as he sees it.

99 stares at the clone for a second, most likely remembering the one brother that gave him the medal, before looking back to his brothers. "So why have you returned to Kamino?" He asks.

"The generals received word of an impending attack here." Fives informs him.

"We intercepted a transmission that pretty much guarantees an attack here." I add.

"Well, how can I help?" He may be defected, but he's still just as willing to fight and help as another clone as he straightens, determined like any other.

I think for a second on what he could do. He can't really use blasters properly or fight in open combat like his brothers, but I think I know at least some way he can help. "You are basically the… janitor of this place, right?" I ask him.

"That's right, sir. Cleaning up and moving supplies as needed."

"Hmmm, that means you know the layout of this place fairly well, correct?"

"Heh, like the back of my hand." He confidently claims.

' _Perfect.'_ I smile and reach behind me. "Then that's good." I pull out a spare commlink and hand it to the defected clone. "I've been shown this place somewhat but I don't know everywhere or every single turn. Should I need to be somewhere, I'll contact you where I'm at and you can tell me where to get where, okay?" I propose he do for me.

He looks surprised at the offer of aid for me as he looks at the device for a second before looking back at me. "You… mean it, sir?" He asks surprised and I nod. He takes the device and puts it in his pocket.

"I do. And please, just Mat is fine." I turn to the other two. "And remember that goes for you two as well. Just Mat will do." I make sure to remind my tour guides of that fact.

"You got it, si- Uh, Mat." Fives says.

"Mat." My commlink goes off as my master contacts me.

"Yes, Master? What is it?"

"Signals are coming in out of hyperspace. I need you back at the bridge."

"On my way Master." I shut off the device before looking at the others. "Tours over. Get ready you three." I grimly order them. All three nod as we go our separate ways.

* * *

As my master had states, the Separatist fleet has arrived and the city is put on high alert. All of us Jedi, Lama Su, as well as Rex and Cody are here watching the hologram that depicts the battle going on overhead.

"Shore up our defenses." Cody orders.

"The fleet is not as large as I expected." Master Shaak-Ti comments and she's right. In order to try to take this facility, much less destroy it, they'd need a much bigger fleet and ours is outnumbering them fairly well. "Begin the air strike." She orders our fleet to do. Already the hologram of the fleet begins to show the progress of the battle as both sides battle each other out. Our side easily outnumbers the enemy three to one and it shows as pieces of Grievous's fleet begins to tear apart.

"Warning! Falling debris." The warning system of the city goes off as it begins to tell us of the torn pieces of the Separatist fleet falls to the planet.

"Grievous appears to be sacrificing his transports in favor of protecting his command ship." Master Shaak-Ti points out that little fact and she's right. Already the various ships of their fleet are mostly transports and their tanking most of the hits.

"Something's not right." As my master says this, the foreboding feeling hasn't gone away on how… simple this plan is going for the enemy. Already more and more pieces of debris from the enemy's fleet continues to rain down on the planets ocean waters.

"I'm gonna press the attack, Master." Master Skywalker informs my master of what he plans to do.

"No, Anakin. Wait. It's too easy. Not even Grievous would attack so recklessly." My master tries to stop him and point out that little fact. If what I've heard about the Separatist General, he's cruel, horrific but he's not stupid.

"Master, the battle's up here in space, not down there." Master Skywalker retorts, fully committed to the battle up top.

"The debris from the destroyed Separatist ships is the key." My master says as he points to the falling debris and the impact points on the hologram.

"There is a lot of it." I add.

"What are you thinking?" Master Shaak-Ti asks.

"I think I'd like to go for a swim." He proposes his plan. As he turns to get ready to go swimming, he looks at me. "Mat, I need you to go and keep an eye out outside in case the enemy does do something sneaky."

"You got it, Master." I agree with the plan and follow him out.

* * *

"Anything, Master?" I ask over the commlink as I look through the binoculars. All I see is the crashing waves of the ocean so if there's anything that's going to happen, my master should see it first in his submersible.

"Nothing as of yet."

"Only you could be worried about the ships I already shot down." Master Skywalker says from his continued fighting in space.

"Pays to be cautious, Master Skywalker." I comment right back. We go back into silence as well all focus on our current tasks until my master speaks again.

"Wait a minute. Aqua droids. Looks as though they're assembling assault craft."

"What?" I mutter at the info. _'Assault craft?'_

"Anakin, I was right. Those downed transports were hiding ships for an underwater assault. Anakin, come in!" My master tries to contact him but we get now reply.

"I think we're getting some interference from the storms Master. I can't contact him either."

"…"

"Master?" I go to call him again but like with Master Skywalker, I can't talk to him. "Not good." I start to move back inside and start going to rally whatever troops I can.

I soon find myself in one of the hanger areas of the facility and get ready with the troops to prepare to defend this place from the enemy's assault.

Suddenly, loud thuds and machinery movement can be heard. "What was that?" One clone asks.

I run out side and I am met with the view of seeing the Separatists Trident drill assault crafts jumping out of the water and latching onto the various buildings. "Whoa." I mutter as the equipment they decided to use for this engagement against us. My moment of awe is interrupted though as one of the ships jumps right in front of me and latches against the side of the building. It rears itself back to stab into the hanger… that's right behind me. "Holy—!" I shout and throw myself as hard as I can to the right. I move out of the way just in time as the giant machine rushes right where I just was and tears a giant hole through the side of the building and large door. Lots of dust and pieces of metal rain down around me and once the tearing of metal is done, I turn myself around and look at the machine that almost nearly killed me. "Wow, crap." I grunt as I get back up to my feet. A quick look around shows I'm completely cut off from the hanger from here without a clear entrance of getting back in. "Great. Just great. Need to find another way back in." I mutter out loud as I start running, hoping to find an entrance where I can start engaging the enemy directly. As I go I keep noticing the sheer amount of droid crafts that continue to jump out of the water and attack themselves to the various buildings. "This is not good." I mutter to myself. As I continue to run, its then I notice that one of my blasters is gone. "Oh c'mon!" I angrily shout as I two hand my last blaster.

* * *

As the battle for Kamino continues to rage on, several groups of the Jedi and Republic continue to fight and hold on against the enemy to keep them from destroy key structures of Tipoca City. Anakin Skywalker has already made his way back to the planet and has joined his former master in taking on the groups of droids that have moved in. Master Skaak-Ti is defending their central command area while the majority of the clones try to destroy the aqua droids that continue to be dropped from the assault crafts. Two clones, Echo and Fives, continue to fire from a vantage choke point position against a continuous column of aqua droids going up to them to protect the bridge.

"Fives, keep firing. We can beat these guys." Echo encourages his brother as they both continue to fire from prone positions on the enemy. Coming from their right, the defected clone known as 99 comes hobbling over to them with a pack strapped to his back filled with some gear for them.

"I… I brought you some ammo." He tells them.

"Is there a better spot than this, a better defensive position we can take?" Fives asks his brother. Right now their doing alright in holding the area but the enemy is relentless here. If there's anyone who can give them a better positioning idea of the cloning facility, it'd be 99.

"Droids! Behind us!" Before either of them can answer, Echo warns them as a small group of B1 battle droids come from the same direction that 99 just came from.

"Look! Grenades!" He points to the spilled open backpack with its grenades clear as day for them to see. Fives quickly runs out and grabs one of the grenades before throwing it at the B1 droids, destroying them all in an instant.

"Thanks, 99. Good job." Echo compliments his defected brother.

"More of them!" 99 suddenly shouts down the other way as more droids begin to make their way to them. Fives is about to throw another grenade but a flurry of blue blaster bolts impact the droids from behind. All three clones look at each other confused before the shooter rounds the corner. "Mat!" 99 shouts happily at seeing the Jedi Commander jog up to them.

"Watch it!" He shouts and aims behind them as he spots some figures moving in the smoke from Fives first grenade throw. They all aim and wait to see who it is and it's a good thing they did because it turns out its some clone cadets that emerge from the smoke.

"Cadets. What are you doing here?" Fives asks them, especially considering they aren't supposed to be out and about when theirs actual fighting going on. They may be clones but they haven't completed their training yet.

"We got separated From our group." The lead cadet informs them.

"Where were they taking you?" Echo asks.

"The barracks."

"Oh, I know the best way there." 99 chimes in.

"Lead the way, 99." Mat says and the group begins making their way there.

* * *

Because of his near perfect knowledge of the layout of this place, we make it to the barracks without any other complications. The cadets all take a breather as do I.

"What are we gonna do?" One of the cadets asks.

"A separatist victory means death for all of us." 99 states the obvious truth to everyone here. Not only would losing this place would mean we lose the war but also the thousands of other clones that still haven't even been finished growing yet in their defenseless vats. "The cadet is right. What are we gonna do?" He asks.

For a second, none of us have much to say. "We fight." At least until Rex and Cody make an appearance.

"Rex! Cody! Good to see you!" I walk up and pat their arms in greeting.

"You too Commander." Cody replies as they return the gesture

"But our training's not finished." One of the cadets makes the excuse but right now we can't have that.

"Look around." Thankfully, Fives has the right idea. "We're one in the same, same heart, same blood. Your training is in your blood. And my blood's boiling for a fight." He gives a short but confident speech to the cadets.

"This is our home. This is our war." Echo adds to the last of it. I smile at the both of them for their words in inspiring these young soldiers.

"What about weapons?" The cadet asks. He's not wrong. We're kind of low on weapons and ammo. Pretty sure my pistol is down to its last power cell.

"The armory. It's just a few corridors away here in the barracks. I can retrieve all the firepower that we need." Again, 99 saves the day. "Hah, so who wants to blast some droids?" He confidently asks the rest of us. There is no shortage of nods from everyone in taking down some droids before they turn to me.

"Alright then, Commander Morrow, how should we proceed?" Rex goes into full soldier mode as he and everyone else straightens up, ready for me, a commanding officer, to give their orders.

Instead of immediately giving them some orders, I stare at them all for a few seconds as I slowly look around the room, examining the bunk area of the clones. The place where they rest up, train and get ready to take the tests for them to become full clone troopers. As my eyes linger on the still young clone cadets, I sigh and take the DC-15A blaster rifle laying against the ladder into my hands. I stare at Rex before shaking my head. "No, Rex, Cody, Fives and Echo. What are YOUR orders?" I ask as I straighten up to them instead.

This gets a surprised and confused reaction from everyone here. "Sir?" Cody asks but I place my hand on Rex's shoulder.

"This… is not my planet. This is not my home planet. This is yours. All of you." I sweep my hand towards every single one of them. "I am not going to give you all orders on how to defend your home when I know your just as capable and driven to do it already." I give each and everyone of them a long hard stare with my words before laying the rifle against my shoulder. "So I ask again: What are your orders? Where do you want me?" I smile as I ask them.

It was one thing to get blaster training from the clones. Now I'm going to be taking orders from them on a battlefield. No doubt their confused a little from this development, but they smirk nonetheless as they dawn their helmets.

* * *

"Ha, here it is. Everything we need is here." 99 comments as we finally make it to the armory, just like he said and led us to. As the name of the room suggest, there is a plethora of weapons and gear for us to use and aid us in our fight and to implement our plan. From blasters to cannons and grenades, we have them.

"Excellent work, 99." Rex compliments him before we start to gather all the explosives and blaster rifles we need to use and arm everyone.

As I look around the weapons for us to use, one particular set catches my attention. As I begin to think on the area where we'll be fighting in and who we're facing. At the thought, this is the perfect opportunity for me to use this particular weapon. As I grab the necessary power cells for my pistol, I grab a couple for my primary weapon and heft it into my hands. "Whoa really, sir?" Cody asks in surprise as he spots me with the weapon.

I chuckle at his surprise and smile at him. "You tell me any other opportunity I can possibly be in that'll let me use this thing to its full effectiveness?" I ask him.

"…" The clones all think for a second as they remember where we are before they realize it.

"That's what I thought." I walk out the room hefting my new weapon to use.

Cody shakes his head before he picks up a pack. "Hurry up. The droids have almost reached the barracks. Let's get into position." He calls out and we start making our way back to the barracks, waiting to put our ambush into action.

* * *

"Open up."

"Get those doors open and scare the remaining clones out of hiding."

"Roger, roger." The droid obeys its order shoots the controls but we are already prepared for it. We open fire on him and any other droids we see in the doorway. A few of them fall instantly to our fury.

"Blast them." The droids try to shoot back but we take them down as well as they try to get an angle on us. It's when they start to cluster in and push through the door that we are forced to retreat. We run through the hallway until we make it back to the main area of the barracks. As the first one of us readies himself behind cover do the droids begin firing on us. I send a few shots back with my pistol as we run into cover. Rex, Cody, Fives, Echo and I engage the enemy while the cadets and 99 lie in wait. We move back one at a time as we take turns in suppressing the enemy in order to let us move back. Rex and I manage to make it to 99, who gives us grenades to toss while the enemy continues to advance. As the others up front pull back, Rex and I toss some grenades at the droids. We purposely let the droids gain so much ground until they walk right into our trap.

"Cadets, now!" Upon his order, the sleeping tubes where the clones rest and recuperate open up right behind the droids from above, revealing the clone cadets as they open fire on the backs of the enemy's. The droids try to shoot on both sides but its the scrap heap for them as we catch them in a cross-fire.

"Now for an even bigger cross-fire." I mutter with a grin and grab my primary weapon from the ground. Holding it in both hands, I step out. "Eat this!" I shout as the barrels of my Z-6 Rotary cannon spool up for a second before a flurry of blue blaster bolts fly out of the multiple barrels of my weapon straight at the enemy. With the added fire, the droids begin to fall even faster due to the narrow path they are forced to take in this place. The sheer volume of shots that fly from my weapon is exhilarating and I can't help but smile as the droids continue to become perforated. The fun and feel of springing the ambush though must come to an end as we start to lose the momentum. "Reloading!" I call out and move back behind cover where I begin the task of replacing the power cell. It's not as simple as other blasters so it takes me a second to get it ready to fire again.

In order to cover me, Rex jumps out and tosses another grenade before coming right back in. He goes to grab the last grenade. "Last one, Commander. Make it count." Rex says as he tosses the last grenade to Cody.

"I'll get more." 99 says and before anyone can do anything, he starts running to go find more grenades.

I hastily move to finish reloading as Rex tries to stop him. "99, you can't!"

"I'm a soldier like you!" He replies still determined to move.

"99, don't!" I yell after the clone but he continues on. While I admire his will to continue doing what he can to help us, I don't like how out in the open he is.

"Eaahhh!" It's when he gets shot in the leg that my heart sinks.

"99, no!" Echo yells out as he opens fire on the droids with everything he's got, doing what he can to tear apart the droids so they don't fire on the retreating clone.

But there's too many of them.

Because of our connection to the force, Jedi can sense the energy that flows through the air when it comes to blasters. That's why we can deflect all types of blaster bolts with ease because we know where the shots are going to fly and land. And right now in this moment, I can see the shots heading straight for 99.

My teeth grit.

My hands tighten on the handles of my cannon.

"NOOOOO!" The words flow from my mouth loudly as I step out completely. I step out in the open and open fire with everything I have against these blasted droids! "Ah!" I yelp as one shot nearly hits me but it just pass over my shoulder left shoulder, the extreme heat leaving a small burn but only an inconvenience. The red blaster bolts flow around me as I continue to fire regardless while I make myself the sole focus of the droids attention, shielding 99 as best I can while more close blaster shots nearly hit but never actually. "AAAHHH!" It's when a shot grazes my right shoulder harshly that I finally falter.

"Commander!"

"Mat!"

The clones all shout in concern at the hit I take. While they renew their attempts to open fire to cover me, I don't care to admit it… but I'm angry. As I turn back to the droids, I stare at them as I've had enough of this. _'Its time to end this!'_ I pick my cannon up before I throw it as hard as I can towards the droids. "ECHO! FIVES! CADETS!" Both clones turn from their onslaught to see me throwing my weapon… and pulling my arms back. "DOOOOWWWN!" They take the initiative and push themselves against or retreat into their cover. The force concentrates around me… and I unleash it.

"HRRRAAAA!"

* * *

"Hm?" Ventress stops her walking amidst the dead bodies of the clones she's killed at the curious force signature. _'Interesting… I feel like I've felt that before.'_ She thinks on the sudden spike. However she doesn't dwell on it too long as she moves to complete her objective.

* * *

Master Shaak-Ti freezes at the sudden flare up of power in the force. She stops focusing on it as she continues to deflect blaster shots.

* * *

"Huh?" Anakin too stops in his tracks and tries to feel the signature again but its gone now. "What?" He mutters confused before running on.

* * *

Obi-wan blocks a lightsaber strike from General Grievous before pushing the cyborg off of him and force pushing him away. Before he can push, he feels it.

"Mat." He mutters at the power spike he feels from his Padawan. _'What happened?'_ His questioning thought gets interrupted as the General tries to take his head off, forcing him to block it.

* * *

"Haaaa… haaaa… haaaaa…" I let out tired breaths.

Fives and Echo peel themselves off the wall as the power of the force exhibited on them pushed them against their cover. They groan from the pressure placed on them but move about to loosen themselves up. Its when they move out into the open that everyone sees what happened. Scratches adorn the sides, a couple panels almost fall off the walls, but it's the dreads almost embedded into the far off wall, along with my cannon, that shows what happened. "Wooaaah." Echo moans in stunned surprise.

"You can say that again." Fives agrees with the sentiment.

"Nuh." I grunt as I fall onto one knee.

"Commander!" Rex calls out as both he and Cody ease me against the wall to rest. "Take it easy sir."

"Ow." I mutter as now that I'm not focusing on the battle, the burns start to sting. Besides the one to my shoulder, none of them actually hit me but came way too close to hitting me in general.

"Commander!" 99 comes hobbling in next to me. I'm relieved to see him alright but seeing the blaster scoring on his leg still makes me worried. "Here. This should help." He pulls out a bacta bandage from the pack and gives it to Cody to place on my most serious wound. These bandages have a powerful liquid material in them called bacta that is a powerful healing element that can stabilize and heal nearly any type of wound people can sustain. Many clone soldiers would even be completely submerged in the stuff in tank vats to make sure for a more accelerated and effective means to heal them. However this is reserved for the critically and more life threatening injuries that they would sustain. Most often you'l be treated with bandages and patches laced with the stuff to focus that one area's healing rate. He doesn't get the chance to place it on me though as I put my hand on him to stop him.

"99 first."

"What?! No sir! You take priority and—" Before Cody can finish arguing, I grab the front of his chest plate and pull him close while giving him a glare.

"Him first. That's an order soldier." I strongly tell him without any room for argument. For awhile now I've been willing to let some things slide with those I fight with, not willing to keep a full on soldier aspect and show I don't see them as just soldiers. Now it seems I'll to make sure they know I'm still the leader.

He stares at me for a moment before he nods. "Yes sir." He moves back to the injured defected clone and begins to bandage his leg. While he does that, I decide to do my own form of healing. With the force, some Jedi have abilities to do all sorts of things when used right and some of those just happens to be a form of healing. I close my eyes and concentrate as I begin to steady pace of healing my wounds. When hearing about how we're going to fight, I had decided to learn more about how to heal wounds using the force and while its not at the more advanced levels of use, I only know the basics so it takes a while and some firm concentrations to make sure it gets done right. The burning pain eases up from the rest of my body but my shoulder still stings before I have to stop. The push I did earlier did a number on me. Letting out a breath I was holding, I open my eyes and look to see their done helping with 99's leg. "Alright. He's stable sir. Should make a full recovery. Now you." I don't argue as I let him move my clothes to get at the shoulder graze. Without wasting anytime, he places bandage on the blaster burn before making sure it's firmly stuck to my shoulder and ready to heal me.

As soon as it's placed, the relief is immediate as a cool feel hits me right there on the burn. I smile in satisfaction. "Ahh, thank you."

"You got it, sir."

"Can you stand?" Fives asks as he offers his hand to me. With a smirk, I grab his hand and let him pull me to my feet. As soon as I do, I roll my shoulders and my neck a couple times before nodding to him.

"Wow." The cadets begin climbing down from their positions and take in our impromptu area of combat. "We did it. We held them back." One of them says excitedly on the fact they were in a firefight and won.

"That was a close one 99." Rex says as he pats the clones shoulder. 99 smiles at the words but for some reason he still looks… down. While I would ask what's wrong, we still got more to deal with.

"Yes… uhh, sir?"

"We're good here but we still have a whole facility to deal with." I begin to say and start giving orders. "Cadets: Stay here and defend this place. Think of it as a safe haven and defensible position for any other clones that come by." They nod as they hold their weapons up. "Echo, Fives, Rex, Cody: Move out and start mopping up any and all droid detachments you can find. Make sure to stop by the armory to resupply. 99: Go out and find more of our men and resupply them wherever you can. If anyone hears anything on where the droids may be going or attacking, let everyone know on the comms." I hold up my commlink as an example. "Move out everyone." I finish and begin moving.

"Uhh sir, what are you going to do?" Echo asks before I go too far from them. I stop and pull out my pistol before looking back at them.

"Classic warfare strategy: go for the key infrastructures. And I can think of a few that are unique to this place specifically." I mutter the last part to myself but they get it and nod.

"We'll get it done sir." Rex acknowledges my orders as he holds up his carbine.

"Good." I bow to them all. "May the force be with you all." With the Jedi way of saying 'good luck' to them, I turn right around and run to my destinations in mind.

* * *

"He's… really… not like other Jedi is he?" Cody asks out loud as they keep staring where their Commander just left.

Rex for his part, turns to the defected clone 99, who is also staring at the wounded leg he sustained when trying to help more than he may have. "No, he's not."

* * *

Ventress has finally made it to her destination. While General Grievous and the clones were all meant to distract and cause as much destruction to the facility as possible, Ventresses job was to move through the enemies lines and find the one thing that the Republic has that there is nowhere else in the entire galaxy: the DNA chamber housing the key component of the entire clone army. Under no circumstances is she to destroy it, as much as she thinks it'd be preferable, as finding out more about the DNA that makes the clone would unlock new possibilities for the Separatists. Something that the Republic and the Jedi cannot allow.

Ventress strides into the DNA chamber without any complications or retaliation against her. As soon as she steps up to the console, she feels a presence come up behind her, making her smirk. "I was beginning to think my presence went unnoticed. But your too late, I already have what I need." She says and just as she says that, the chamber opens up with the cannister holding primary DNA code of one Jango Fett, the heart and soul of the Republic clone army. "… What?!" She yells angrily as the cannister that was supposed to come out doesn't. Its empty.

"Looking for something?" The voice asks, making himself known and not just any presence. Ventress whirls around in anger as she spots Mat of all smiling smugly at her.

She scoffs at him. "You… I don't care about you. I don't have time to deal with the likes of you." She brushes him off and goes back to the computer to trying to figure out where her objective was taken.

"Oh… looks like your prize was taken. I wonder where it went?"

"…" Her hands freeze above the console at the tone that the Padawan speaks to her in. The way how he was talking puts her on edge and makes her think that he had something to do with the missing DNA. "… Where… is it?" She asks very angrily and crossly as she turns back to him. Even now as she's staring at him with pure anger, the smirk doesn't leave his face.

"What? The focal DNA that makes the clones. Yeah I had a feeling something like that was going to happen… so I took it."

"WHERE?!" She yells and ignites her blades but he chuckles.

"Ah ah ahhhh. I was the one that took the cannister from there and only I know where it is."

"And what's to stop me from getting the information from you painfully?" She threatens but he isn't deterred by it as he shakes his head.

"Because you don't have the time to do so."

*Boooom*

A distance explosion can be heard going off. "See. Already your troops are being destroyed as we speak and you do not have the time to torture me for the information nor can you afford to kill me since I know where your objective is."

"…" As much as she would like to cut him down and be done with the thorn in her side, he does present some valid arguments to her that while she doesn't want to believe are right, she doesn't have a choice in the matter. Not if she wants to complete what she was tasked to do. "Well, seems you're not as pathetic as I thought."

"I feel soooo relieved." He answers sarcastically, which sparks her ire but she reigns it in.

"What is it you want?"

"My lightsaber, now." He demands instantly without hesitation.

She stares at him for a few seconds before she reaches behind her and pulls out his weapon. A smile graces his face as he finally lays eyes again on his weapon. "Here it is. Now where is it?" She demands as well.

"No. Give me my lightsaber and I'll tell you where it is. Even show it to you." He offers to her but she gets a cross angry look.

"No. You go get it, bring it to me and then I'll give you your weapon back." She counter offers but Mat will not have it from her.

"You think I'm stupid?" He states annoyed. "You're a Sith. If I bring you the DNA container, there will be nothing stopping you from cutting me down without so much as giving me my weapon."

"And how do I know I can trust you to keep your word?"

"Because I'm a Jedi." He states with certainty. "I think you know enough about us to know that its not really in a Jedi's nature to lie or deceit someone when given their word basically." He explains as best he can to her. Between a Jedi and a Sith, it's the user of the Dark side that'll more likely lie to you than a Jedi will and so he is not budging on the topic.

She clenches her hands tightly against her lightsaber and the one belonging to Mat. The idea of this… child giving her orders now makes her blood boil at the action. But in the end, his arguments, and his caution are all valid and she lets out an angered sigh. "Fine. Here." She tosses the lightsaber to him. He catches it easily enough one handed while still holding his pistol in his left. For a moment he doesn't move with his weapon in his grasp until he turns it on.

The familiar sound as a lightsaber turns in is music to his ears seeing as how its by his own hands and his own weapon. He smiles as he stares at the blue blade and swings it a couple times around to get a feel for it again back in his possession. "Nice. Thank you for taking care of it."

"Quit stalling!" She yells at him angrily. "You have your lightsaber back. Now show me where it is?!" She angrily demands yet again.

After admiring his weapon a bit more, he looks back at her as he turns his weapon off. He gets a look of thinking as he tries to remember where it is. "The DNA container… right. What I promised to give you if you gave me back my weapon… I don't think so."

"… What?" Its only one word but the sheer amount of anger that seems to be rising in her can be felt by him in droves. "What do you mean, you don't think so?" She quietly asks but its from restrained anger.

"By what it means, I'm not going to show you where it is."

Her hands clench tightly, almost drawing blood at the change Mat has given her. "You gave your word." She states.

Remembering that little part, he smiles and nods. "Yeah, true. I gave my word. But you know what else?" He says it as a question but he answers it anyway. "I really don't care about you."

"… I will make your death…. Extremely painful." She brings both her arms up to grab Mat but he's already one step ahead of her. He opens fire on her, forcing her to forgo using the force to push or choke him and bring one of her blades up to block his blaster shots. He doesn't let up on the shots before she's had enough and charges him. "HRRAAAAA!" She dashes forward and jumps, her red lightsaber poised in a thrusting strike to end Mat in one fatal blow.

He in turn ignites his own weapon and slashes.

* * *

The red lightsaber stabs through the door and stops an inch from my face. I step back from the deadly blade and look to the side at the door controls. A single burning cut goes through the control panel, forcing the door to close and stop Ventress from hitting me. "Phew. That was a close one." After pissing her off, it was a real gamble to do that and halt her attack but I'm glad it worked out. Reaching behind me, I pull out the DNA cannister I had on me the whole time. "Perfect." I mutter as I toss it into the air and catch it. Another lightsaber stabs through the door and both blades begin running along the sides of the doors. "Not perfect." I run as fast as I can down the hallway and a couple more as far away from the murderous Dark Jedi looking to lop my head off. _'Gotta get out of here. But most of all I have to make sure she doesn't get this thing at all costs. But ho—?'_ "Oof!"

"Aah!"

I suddenly find myself crashing into someone and falling to the ground. After a moment for both of us to groan, I look to see who it was that I crashed into. "Master Skywalker!" Thankfully its someone I know.

"Ow. Oh, Mat. Good to see you. Listen I could use your help in protecting—"

"TheDNAcapsulecontainingthegeneticcodeoftheclones I know. Way ahead of you." I quickly tell him as I hold up everyone's objective in hand. His eyes widen as he stares at the container that I should not have.

"What are you doing with that? That's supposed to be in the DNA chamber where its supposed to be."

I go to respond.

"WHERE ARE YOU?!"

I tense up as I hear the loud voice of a pissed off Dark Jedi not far from me. Master Skywalker looks in the direction I just came from before looking back at me. "I may have pissed off Ventress when I got this thing and she's chasing me."

"You what?!" He asks surprised but I quickly shush him.

"Shhhhhh! Quiet! Alright, listen sir. Without a doubt, she can't have this whatsoever nor can she destroy it so here's what's going to happen. I'm going to lead her away with this empty one," I pull out the empty one from behind me. "While you keep this safe."

"What? No. No way am I letting you take Ventress on all by yourself, let alone be a decoy for her." He doesn't like the idea and means to not go through with it.

Before I can properly explain why this has to be, I can hear her footsteps running down the hallway. "There's no time, Master!" I shove the DNA into his hands and push him into a nearby room before I lock the door. I can hear his protests on the other side as he tries to open it again but can't. I step back away from the door before turning back to the corner and see Ventress staring deathly at me. "I've got your prize Ventress!" I hold the empty cannister up while pulling out my pistol. "You want it?! Come and get it!" I challenge her and shoot at her, forcing her to defend against my attack and give me the chance to put some distance against her. I run and shoot and while my shots are not as accurate, they do force her to keep her guard up in order to defend against me and any lucky shots I may land. Either way, it's exactly what I want for her to chase. At least in this instance.

I continue to lead her around until I manage to find a path leading outside. As soon as I make it, I look around for any other way I can possibly go to escape and try to find some backup but the wreckages of some of the assault crafts are blocking both ways to either side of me. I turn around to head back but I stop as now something else is blocking me. "Nowhere to run now." Ventress hisses to me as she has a sick demented smile on her face. Taking one last look around me in hopes of finding another route, I still find nothing that can help.

I sigh and stare at her as I clip the cannister to behind my belt. "Well, it was only a matter of time." I mutter as my pistol is in my left hand and I pull out my lightsaber in my right. "Shall we have a proper duel now?"

"Hm, we'll see if you can make even a little effort against me." She taunts as she turns on her blades. While I may be ready to fight her, my confidence in my ability to isn't on par with my words to be honest. It's been awhile since I used a lightsaber and since then I was focusing on my blaster use. Now after so long I have suddenly use the blade again. With both our weapons ready to attack, we slowly circle each other as we gauge each other and do what we can to read our opponents carefully and what they might do.

Ventress is the first to attack as she charges at me with a war cry. I open fire on her as she moves, forcing her to deflect the shots back at me but I'm one step ahead as I dodge my shots and bring my own blade around to strike her. She blocks my side slice with both blades before pushing me off and striking to cut me from multiple angles using her two lightsabers. Because of the two she has, I am unable to properly attack her as I focus entirely on defending myself from her continued onslaught. She attacks with one after another as I can only defend myself from the repeated strikes to cut me from my sides. I even try to shoot at her a couple times but she easily dodges the close proximity blaster shots until I make a fatal mistake.

I block both her blades from a single attack and push her off me and aim my gun right at her as she moves back. As I pull the trigger to shoot her, she leans back, dodging my telegraphed shot before bringing one of her blades up and slices the barrel of my blaster in half before following up with a kick to my stomach. A couple elbow strikes to my face and a punch to injured shoulder are all that she needs to take me down before she knees me in the stomach.

"Ahh." I hiss after the beating she gave me as I kneel on the ground. To further taunt me, she walks over and grabs my lightsaber again.

"You really don't deserve this." She tells me and picks up the cannister. "Finally." She says to herself with a smile after finally obtaining her objective. Its when she gets a feel for the weight that the smile disappears and mine begins. "Wait… this is…" She shakes it's a few times in her hand before she angrily clenches it tightly in her hand. "This is empty!" She states angrily and throws it into the ground.

"Oh, really. Wow I didn't notice. Ack!" I say to her sarcastically before I suddenly feel a constricting motion on my neck. All of a sudden, I'm lifted into the air with Ventress force choking me again.

"Quit playing games with me." She hisses in my face as she holds me close to her but doesn't let up on the choking. "Where did you leave it?" She requests but I only chuckle, further sparking her ire.

"Somewhere where you'll never get it." Is my reply and from the further tightening of on my throat, it was not what she wants. She stares directly into my eyes angrily. For a few seconds the cutting of my oxygen begins to worsen as my vision begins to darken and I start weaken considerably. Already I've been taxed harshly this whole fight and its getting harder to stay conscious. Even so, I can still here one last thing.

"Mat?"

"And where your going, they'll never get you." She threatens one last time and before I know, my entire body is completely weightless as she throws me.

* * *

"MAT!" Anakin calls out at the last minute as he watches the Padawan go sailing through the air and off the edge of the facility towards the water.

"Ohhh, poor boy." The sarcasm in Ventresses voice can be heard clear as day as she turns around to the Jedi that was too late. "So sad. But… that's life."

Anakin grits his teeth as he pulls out his lightsaber and turns it on. "Your going to pay for this Ventress." He threatens as he glares at her.

"Ha ha ha ha." She lets out a low chuckle as she pulls out both her lightsabers and ignites them. "Let's see you try Skywalker." She replies and the two charge each other. She tries to cut him from the left but he deflects her attack and strikes to her but she blocks the hit and tries to counter him but he blocks her in kind. He pushes her back and goes for a low strike to her from the left but she jumps up to dodge the slash. They trade lightsaber blows again and again with Anakin's strikes fueled by a bit of anger after watching Mat plunge to the rough waters down below. He pushes her back and tries to hit her but her dual lightsabers makes her just a step ahead in defending against him. After one particular block, she kicks him in the stomach that sends him sliding back away, giving them a moment to breathe and take stock. "Are you angry, Skywalker? Don't like that I just killed a promising pupil?" The taunts to him. "I didn't really see it. He couldn't stand up to me even a little."

"Shut it, Ventress." He growls at her before readying himself again to fight. "I'm going to make sure you never do anything like that ever again!" He threatens her, malice in his voice.

Ventress chuckles again as she too gets ready to attack him again.

"It's alright Master Skywalker!" Suddenly the familiar voice of the Padawan they thought was dead comes in over the commlink.

"Mat?" Anakin replies confused but also slightly relieved.

"I'm fine Master! I'm safe. Don't worry about me." He quickly assures the Jedi Knight he's alright before cutting off the connection.

With a smile, Anakin turns back to the assassin with his own smirk to her. "Well, Ventress. Looks like you failed… again." Now he taunts back to her now.

Now its her turn to feel unbridled anger that she wasn't even able to kill the nuisance to her.

* * *

"Phew." I sigh in relief at the close call. I look around from my spot on the side of the building. After Ventress tossed me away, I reached out and was able to launch one last subtle force pull and bring my lightsaber back into my hands as I fell. Then it was a matter of reorienting myself as I fell against the building in order to activated my lightsaber and stab it into the building to stop myself. Now I am hanging here against the smooth surface of the building with my lightsaber being the only thing keeping me from plummeting straight down to the harsh waves down below and either I die on impact with the water or drown to the waves. "Real close." I mutter as I stare back up top to see the edge where I fell from. "Alright, now I just need to figure out how to get out here. Quickly." I tell myself as I look around. Problem is its pretty high up and my arm is getting tired from holding on. I grab the handle with both hands and try to pull myself up. "Okay. I need to pull myself up and hopefully figure out how to- Oh! Crap! Noooo!"

In trying to pull myself up, I pressed my feet against the wall to try to climb up but the rain has made the smooth surface slick and lose my footing as I slam down. In my haste to grab the handle, my finger brushed against the button to turn off and on my lightsaber and now I find myself falling down the side of the building. "No no no nononononoo!" I repeatedly say over and over again as I try to grab a holding but my plummet remains constant. Before I can try to stop myself again, I land on a small incline of the building itself and find myself sliding down a curved rounded section of a rooftop like the ones up top. Even so, I can't stop myself still as I roll down the roof. I start to feel dizzy from the rolling and I can't stab my blade into the roof because I'm jerking around too much. I grunt as I fall push myself for a moment off the roof so I can land on my back and slide some more, this time without the rolling. My thoughts try to come up with ideas in order to figure out what to do but soon I watch the edge coming close and close to me. "Crap! No! Come on do something!" I berate myself. Like before, I stab my lightsaber back into the roof as hard as I can to stop myself from falling off completely.

Unfortunately, my momentum was too fast as I'm still moving as my lightsaber tears a large swatch against the metal surface. "Come on stop! Stop! Stop! Stooop!" I almost plead as I come dangerously close to the edge with no signs of stopping. "Arhh! Son of a—!" I yell as I fall off the edge with my lightsaber catching the edge just before I go off. My entire body pulls into the underside of the roof as it tears off and I tumble through the air. Like with the rolling, the dizziness returns as I flip through the air towards the ground. This time I can't fix myself until…

*Crash*

"Oof!" I slam hard onto the ground on my back. On top of my vision spinning in circles from the rolling, the vertigo hits me hard as even though my body is still, everything feels like its moving. "… Aaaahhh. Oowww." I hiss and groan in pain from the abuse. _'I want some time off after this.'_ I don't know if Jedi can get time off, or Padawans for that matter, but I really really don't wanna do anything else right now… or ever.

"Mat?! Come in! Where are you?! I can't see you!"

"Anakin, what's wrong? What happened to Mat?" Master Skywalker talks over the comms with my master shortly after, no doubt concerned with the questions.

"It's okay." I bring my arm in front of me and calmly reply. "I'm alright… kind of." I groan a little.

"Kind of?" My master questions.

"Took some hits, banged up a little, but nothing serious or life threatening. Just really tired." I give the best explanation I can given what I feel right now. Nothing feels broken or torn just probably bruised a lot.

"Where are you? We'll come to you." Master Skywalker says. I crane my head forward from my laying position to see where exactly I landed. Like the rest of the city, I'm pretty sure I landed on some sort of landing platform but an old one to be exact. It's not as well maintained as the rest of the place as theirs green moss and mold having grown over sections but mostly the edge of the whole platform.

"Hard to say. I'm on some old platform. Lots of moss and seaweed all over the place so I don't think anyones used it in a while. Its on the lower section of the place so try going down basically." I explain as best I can given my view.

"Alright, we're coming to you now. The Separatists have already been defeated so just sit tight."

"See you soon."

"Later." I reply to my master and Skywalker before letting my arm fall back to my side. I proceed to close my eyes and just lay there to get my baring's again. "Ughhh. Wow that was… ahhh." I lightly groan as I continue to lay here.

"Are you okay?"

My eyes open at the soft new voice I hear. Opening my eyes, I see a Kaminoan standing over me. From what I can tell it's a she from the voice and face. "… Somewhat." I simply reply.

"How did you get here?"

"… I fell." Its not a perfect answer, but it's all I can think of to say in this situation. Plus, I have no idea what else to say.

She stares at me curiously before she cranes her head up to look at the large roof structure over us. She looks back down at me. "That must be painful."

"It kind of is."

"Do you need help?"

"…Please." She extends her hand for me to take. Grabbing it, she manages to pull me to my feet while I groan all the way up. "Ahhh… thank you. Who are you anyway?" I ask, curious to why she's here when their was a battle.

"I am Nala Se. I am a Doctor here as well as one of the Chief Medical Scientists who works on the creation of the clone troopers that fight alongside you. May I ask who you might be?" She introduces herself to me and asks.

Seeing as who I have in my presence, I grunt as I straighten myself up and speak, "I am Padawan learner Matthew Morrow. But you may call me Mat for short. What are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be somewhere safe?" I ask.

"I and the rest of my colleagues have reassured us that the enemy has been defeated and we are free to move again, as well as provide aid to the wounded soldiers that protected us." She says before taking a closer more careful look at me. "Why don't you come with my young one. I can help tend to those wounds of yours." She offers.

I grab my shoulder that took the hit earlier ago and wince at the soreness. "I'd very much appreciate it." I agree with a grateful smile.

"Come with me then." She leads me as I walk with her as she leads me away.

I limp a little as I walk but thankfully I'm not in any serious danger or chance of injury. If she was allowed to roam outside of the bunker she and her colleagues were placed in then hopefully I won't have to be on my guard right now. "Hm?" However that still doesn't stop me from being curious as I spot something shiny in a pile of seaweed on the platform. "Hold on a second."

"What is it?" She asks as I walk away from her and head to the mysterious object.

It's clustered at the edge of the platform where I go and crouch to dig it out of the small pile of gunk its trapped in. After several pulls of the gunk off the item, I grab it and bring it up to my face for me to examine it. The entire thing is in a weird L shape and is covered in vegetation and moss, giving it a weird feel to it but small patches of it remain untouched, giving some of the silvery but still dirty metal. As I grab it a bit more though, pieces of the green covering begin to fall away and its then that I realize that I have in my hand is a blaster. "What the?" I mutter at what this is doing here. "Ma'am, was this pad used by anyone before?" I ask without looking back.

"Yes, it has. Unfortunately we were informed some time ago that they had lost their life at the beginning of the war, so the platform has fallen from most of our memory's."

"Hmmm." I moan as I try to peel the stuff off it but its caked on there roughly. "Eh, I'll save it for later." I stand back up and walk back over to her. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Shall we?" I apologize and gesture for us to continue to the doors.

"Let's." She agrees and starts walking with me just behind her to her left. As she leads me away, I pull both items in my hands for me to examine them again.

In my left, I hold the moss-covered blaster in my hand and in my right, my original lightsaber now back in my possession. Even though I feel like crap, I'm probably going to be laid out for awhile, but even so I can't help but smile nonetheless.

* * *

 **Again, surprised this took so long. Wasn't expecting to go this hard or this in-depth with the chapter itself but I am quite proud with how this turned out. From what some of you can tell, I did a little bit of changes to the overall timeframe of the episode itself to better suit how I wrote this out but I don't think its that much of a problem. During the lightsaber fights at the end I wanted to try to make them a bit more descriptive in the fighting but it was at that point I was starting to feel I drew the chapter out long enough and wanted to hurry up and get to the end. Hope it was alright.**

 **Anyway, now Mat has finally gotten his hands on his lightsaber again and a new blaster for him to use. He just has to clean it up and fix it back to working order. If anyone can guess who the blaster belonged too, well, kudo's to you in that regard.**

 **Here are the reviews:**

 **BraveSeeker3:** I would too. Hopefully I'll have something in the future. Wait, you did? I'm still unsure. I'm not sure what it is but the conversation just wasn't feeling right to me. Oh well. If you and everyone else liked it, I shouldn't complain.

 **Vulcran Stormblade:** As much as he would like to make sure that doesn't happen, the enemy holds no reservations or the same feelings as he does in keeping his lightsaber with him. At the very least, he will get more harsh scolding from his master. No one likes that.

 **SAK-96:** The clones are that good. After all, they were literally made for combat. Hopefully he will prove to be a force to be reckoned with on the water world.

 **Cf96:** Thanks. I appreciate it.

 **RedHood001:** It's one of those things I kind of like to notice when it came to the series. How these common expendable droids actually some form of intelligence over the others and I like it. Possibly expect to see 218 again in the future. That'll also be something I'm kind of looking forward to in the series. The awkwardness Mat will feel when in certain situations between Obi-wan and Satine. The first I remember seeing them they did argue like an old married couple. We'll see how Mat's place will make this… interesting.

When it comes to Maul, I have some scenes and interactions planned out for Mat to deal with the Sith and his brother. I don't know about you but Mat doesn't seem like the type to lay back and let a vengeful Sith kill his master.

Their will be a lot emotions going on through the series, as per the usual when it comes to Jedi and trying to stay on the path to the light side, and through trials and tribulations will Mat be forced into some dire situations that will test his mental fortitude beyond all levels. How that'll play out… we'll just have to wait and see.

 **Shadow Solaris:** I'm glad you think so. I'm sure I'll come up with something more on those special droids and clones that shine above the rest of their compatriots. The Zilo beast is still a long way off, so you, as well as I, will have to wait and see how that plays out with the addition of Mat.

 **Guest:** Wow. That is something I never knew. I've heard them referenced a couple times but I never really took much thought into it. I just thought all Jedi in the field were automatically given the rank of General but I guess I was wrong. Thank you so much for pointing this out.

 **Just to let you all know, remember that I'm done writing chapters for now for this story don't expect a quick update soon. I'm going to work one after another on all my stories now to get my work fleshed out for everyone I can. Also note, I'll be skipping a few episodes when the next chapter for this story is uploaded.**

 **Thank you all for your support again everyone, I appreciate it. Go ahead and fave, follow, review, whatever you want, have a great day and as always, have fun reading.**


	8. 7 Rest and Research

Being the home and heart of the clone army, you'd never really believe the Separatists would stage an assault on the oceanic world of Kamino but lo and behold, they did. It's been awhile since I had gotten back from that hectic battle and since then, I've had to do what I can to rest and recover from the intense fighting. Not only did I have to rest to heal my wounds but also to rest my mind. I had to pull a lot energy to take out the droids and heal myself in the middle of the battle but so far, I'm expected to make a full recovery. Thankfully too. I did not whatsoever like the idea of gaining a permanent wound from the fighting. Just have to be careful in the future to make sure that doesn't happen.

Since I've had to lay around and meditate, I've also taken to doing some research on some of our opponents in this war.

As it stands, turns out it's not exactly common knowledge on the fact that the two powerful dark Jedi on the Separatist side Dooku and Ventress did not start out as Sith and were something else before. I wonder how many people know about the fact that those two are in fact former members of the Jedi order before they fell to the dark side as the saying goes. Besides that though I couldn't really come or find anything specific as to why they left the order and under what circumstances, more than likely that info is locked up in the deeper more restricted sections of the temple. Sections that I obviously as a Padawan have no right to access.

Sucks but what can you do. Won't really change anything now but it will be interesting to find out how… eventually.

Back to another topic, I looked up a bit more info on the General of the Separatist army and I am definitely curious to see just how that… thing used to be human what eventually lead to him being such a devastating and fear-inducing monster that takes lightsabers as trophy's. General Grievious was once a flesh and blood member of the Kaleesh species and was a warlord on the planet Kalee. Besides that their really isn't much other information in the archives that can be found out about the cyborg, or how he came to be the almost entirely mechanical robotic warrior that is hell-bent on killing and an effective General for the Droid army. The only thing that can be surmised, as well as my own thoughts on the matter, is that he probably wanted to be made how he is now so he can be better suited for combat against whoever he faces. I wouldn't really put it past him to change solely to be a better fighter considering his fascination and lethality when it comes to fighting, as well as his collection of Jedi he's killed.

Its still messed up to think about how lightsaber colors such as blue and green are often most notably used for the light side Jedi and yet General Grievious, our enemy has those colors of choice for his own blades. Either he's just to lazy to switch the crystal to red one, or it's a fear tactic used to remind any Jedi he faces that he has killed many Jedi before the one he is facing in that moment. That basically also tells us, 'if you die here, your blade will be the next for my collection, and the next to fell another one of your Jedi friends.' I don't know if that's what he's going for but that's my guess anyway.

I let out a long running sigh and lay in my bed before I let out a small grunt. After I was picked up by Nala Se, nice lady, I was given a quick batch of bacta on my body to fully and steadily heal up any and all cuts and bruises I formed on my body. The scorch marks on the different parts of my body, the choking I had suffered from Ventress, all the running, moving and dodging, not to mention the fall I sustained just about left me wanting to sleep for a week. Coupled with the fatigue and I was not feeling alright to be honest. While the bacta healed my wounds, my mind was pretty out of it from the power I exhibited throughout the battle. So to make sure I don't do anything strenuous and make sure I make a speedy recovery, I'm to be at the temple until further notice, spending my time resting my body and my mind. Meditation and stuff.

When I'm not doing that, I do what I can to keep track of how the war is going on and the battles that take place while I'm stuck here. From news outlets to getting messages from Ahsoka about how things are going.

"Wait wait wait, what?!" This happens to be one of those times. Ahsoka and I are video chatting with me in the grand archive area of the temple and she on a ship. There are terminals here that allow us to surf online for any sort of information we might be able to look for and on occasion, communicate with others. Mostly their used to access the info of the Archives themselves but that's not what I'm using them for now. "You fought THE General Grievous?!" I ask incredulously and with full of surprise. Its been days, or weeks, depending on which planets solar cycle you want to go with, since her mission and its now that she was finally able to contact me.

"Yep." She answers with a smile but I'm still worried.

"Are you alright?" I ask with concern. The research I've done on that monster makes me hesitant to face him but hearing Ahsoka had fought him just makes me very worried for my friend. Thankfully, my worries alleviate a little as she nods to me.

"Yeah, I'm good. It was a hairy fight but I was able to hold him long enough for the others to complete the mission."

"The mission… you guys had to go find R2 right?" I ask. Before this mission, apparently during a skirmish in space Master Skywalker was knocked out in his fighter and our little blue droid friend was lost among the wreckage. Only after it was made apparent that the droid never received any memory wipes that he still had all the secrets and schematics that the Republic had, it became imperative that we get him back. Although to skywalker, Ahsoka and I we liked the little guy so that was the main reason why we wanted him back while to the higher up brass it was more practical, and important to keep him out of the enemies hands.

"That's right. Skyguy, Rex, his men, I and our new droid went to this secret outpost station where we last heard he was there. Ontop of getting R2 back, we also brought enough explosives to level the place."

"And that's when you encountered Grievous?"

"Yep. We lost some men while my master went to find R2 so in order for Rex to finish the mission, I had to lead him away." She leans back in her chair and sighs a little. "The stories about him were no joke. I don't want to admit but if the station hadn't shook and distracted him, I wouldn't be here right now." She says with forlorn and tired expression but it turns into a small smile. "But I was able to get out of there and make it back to the others. I almost lost my lightsaber too." I think she mentions that because of my former tendency to have lost mine.

"Oh you almost did you? Well that's too bad. If you did then we could have started a club together." I propose sarcastically. We both take it in good humor as we both laugh at the idea. "But in all seriousness, it went alright besides that?"

"Yeah… sort of."

"Sort of?" That's gets my attention. What more could have gone wrong?

"Yeeeeaaahh. Turns out that new replacement droid we had, he was working for the enemy the whole time."

"And almost killed me on several occasions." Just as she says finishes saying does her master walk in and put in his own two credits on the droid.

"Hey, Skyguy."

"Hello, Master Skywalker." I greet him over the screen.

"Hey Mat. How you holding up?" He takes a seat a little behind Ahsoka so he can ask the question.

"Doing well. A little bored but overall I'm doing pretty good. Hopefully it won't be too long before I can join you all in the field again."

"That's good to here. Speaking of the field," He turns to his Padawan and pats her shoulder. "C'mon Ahsoka. Master Luminara is waiting for you."

"Already? Well, alright then."

"What's going on?" I ask, wanting to know why she needs to meet the other master.

"Padme was able to capture Nute Gunray so while I have to stay here and wait for your Master, Ahsoka here is going to meet up with Master Luminara and make sure we transport him to a proper detention facility so we can get him to tell us everything he knows about the Separatists." Master Skywalker simply and quickly explains the gist of the situation.

"Gunray? Wow." I comment. Another member of the Separatist leaders who in our possession could do a lot in offering a big boost to our forces. "Well I won't keep you two. Take care out there."

"We will." Master Skywalker replies and waves.

"Bye Mat." Ahsoka says her bye with a wave and reciprocate the gesture. After that, the communication cuts off and I am left alone.

I let out a long held sigh and lean back in my seat. "Well, now I know what I'm missing." I mutter in bored tone. "And I'm stuck here. Bored."

"And yet you were always hungry for more knowledge." I jerk at the sudden voice I hear and turn around. I relax soon enough when I find none other than the Archives librarian Master Jocasta Nu, the chief librarian of the Archives here greets me, as she always does. She smiles down at me. We become fairly known with each other as I would always come here and look at everything I possible could in terms of specific history moments as well as all the technical knowhow I learned about weapons, ships and such. She'd be kind of enough to direct me to whatever it is I wanted to know. I think she liked the idea of someone so young at the time constantly here and searching for anything to expand my mind.

"Master Nu! So good to see you." I stand up and happily greet her with a slight bow.

"To you as well Matthew." She reciprocates the bow. "So, to what do I owe your visit here today?" She asks me.

"Not really anything specific. As you no doubt saw I just got done talking to Ahsoka."

"Ahhh, yes. How is she?"

"Doing alright. Hopefully I won't be here any longer than necessary so I can help her out in the missions."

"Well don't be in too much of a hurry now. Until then, are you looking for anything in mind? You always seem to be looking for something." She reads me a like a book. More often than not if I end up here without an objective in mind, one will make itself known for me to do.

"Actually, yes, I do." As it stands, I had an objective set originally when I came here before I thought to ask Ahsoka how she's doing. "This is my next mystery." I say as I sit back down and gesture to my right.

In time I've been here on rest, I've also done what I could to expand my knowledge on other pieces of weaponry and machinery that both armies in this war might be able to use. I look to my right and spot the moss-covered blaster I snagged from Kamino. It doesn't have as much seaweed and moss on it anymore as I've already scrubbed as much of it clean as I possibly can but there's still some tough chunks and spots on it still staining all over it. I'm gonna need some more powerful tools to properly get it working and spotless but for now I'm gonna focus on identifying this particular blaster so I can find the parts needed to repair it.

My own little project for the time being. "A blaster?" She reaches for it and carefully takes the item in her hands, being careful to not let it accidentally discharge.

"Pretty much. Although as you can see its pretty rundown and is a far cry from its original pristine condition. And you don't have to worry about it going off. It's power cells have long been drained and corroded beyond repair so theirs no chance of my firing it at all right now."

"That's good. I'm sorry to say but I do not think having a blaster close to the other young ones is advisable." She warns me as she places the weapon down and I nod.

"I understand ma'am. For now, I'm trying to identify what type of blaster it is before I can even think to get it firing again." I grab the weapon and look at it closely. "Its not like any blaster I've ever seen before." I comment.

"It is a peculiar design. Any serial numbers of any kind?"

I shake my head no. "None. Either its an illegally obtained weapon and the numbers have been filed off, or its an entirely custom job. Either way, a weird weapon to have on Kamino."

"Kamino?"

I turn to her. "Yes. During the Battle of Kamino, where I got injured, that's where I found this." I wave to the blaster before I begin putting… anything at this point. The silvery color, shape of it and all. "But its been there a lot longer that's for sure."

"Hmmm, that's peculiar. Besides the clones, theirs not many others that would carry something like that." She begins to think for a second before patting my shoulder. "Well, when I have the chance I'll see if I can find something for you."

"Thank you Master. I appreciate it." I thank her as I tip my head to her a little.

"No worry's. Now my duties require me elsewhere. Take care."

"Another time then." We say our short farewell to each other and I am left alone again to my own devices. That's meant in a literal sense as I take a closer look at the blaster. The weapon is longer than the clones blaster pistol and looks to be heavier in a sense but in fact feels pretty light in terms of its weight. The intensive silver-ish color it has leads me to believe it's a different and special type of material not found on most blasters but I can't be too sure of what it is. In any case, I spend a bit of time typing anything I can to find any sort of reference to what this weapon might be. From its colored appearance, weight, the location I found it and so on. Unfortunately, there isn't anything I can find about the weapon that can lead me to its former owner, or to a manufacturer for that matter. There are no visible markings, stamps or number sets that can lead me to who made this weapon in the first place so I can't even find any replacement parts for this thing.

"Ughhh… dang it." I sigh in slight frustration at my lack of progress. _'Hopefully the caretaker of the archives, may have better luck than me.'_ Without much else for me to do right now, I decide to get up and make my way back to my room, albeit a little more disappointed than when I got there. As I'm walking back to my room, staring at the weapon in my hand all the while, I don't see the person in front of me, "Oof!" I run into someone as I turn the corner. I don't hear the other person make any grunts but I reflexively take a few steps back to steady myself and look at who I ran into. My breath hitches as I find myself in the presence of Jedi Master and Council member Mace Windu. "M-Master Windu! I'm terribly sorry sir. I did not see you there." I quickly and hastily apologize to him while keeping my eyes low. While most Masters are nice and supportive to the young ones, their was always a sort of intimidating air about Master Windu and how he conducts himself that just makes us feel just a little uncomfortable around him, especially me. I still have great respect for him, as to the rest of the Jedi Masters here.

"Hm, you seem distracted young one." I can hear him smirk and say to me.

"Uhhh, yes Master. I've been trying to figure out how to get some parts for something I'm trying to fix up." I quickly explain to him why I was distracted and subsequently ran into him. "I guess I was too distracted to see where I was going." I finish saying as I slightly look at him.

"And what is it that's got you so distracted?" He asks me as he crosses his arms. He doesn't have a stern look or anything, mostly neutral in a sense but he still has that air of authority.

"Oh! Well, during the Battle of Kamino a little while back, I came across this blaster as the battle was over." I pull out the weapon from behind my back and hold it in front of me as I examine it again. "It's a little old and needs a lot of work before it can be in working condition again. So I decided to try to fix it up as a little bit of a hobby and to keep me occupied when I'm not training. My biggest problem is that I can't find out anything about this weapon so far. Do you have an idea of—" My question is completely gone as I look up at Master Windu to see him giving me an intense stare towards the item in my hand. I unconsciously grip the weapon tighter in my hands as he stares. "M-M-Master Windu?" I stutter out his name carefully so as to not anger him in his state, for whatever reason he's in.

He continues to stare for a few more tense seconds until without a word, he simply walks forward, around and past me. I don't bother to look back at him as he walks and simply look down at the weapon I still have in my possession. _'There… there are no rules explicitly stating we can't have blasters here. But… its not really something we Jedi do. Did he not like it or…'_ My mind tries to reel through anything I can figure out about his sudden mood shift. "… WESTAR."

"Huh?" I ask in confusion. I thought I hear him say something but I wasn't too sure. I turn around to look at him but he doesn't look at me. His back is still to me.

Soon, he turns his head a little, so the corner of his eye is looking at me. "WESTAR." He says it one more time, this time much clearer that I hear him. Once he's sure I heard him, I give him a confused look as he walks off without another word or glance back at me. I continue to stare after him until I don't see him anymore when he turns past a corner into another hallway.

I turn back to my front and stare at my weapon. "WESTAR." I mouth the word as I rack my brain around trying to remember where I heard that name before. Soon, my eyes widen and I immediately do a 180 and head straight back to the archives.

* * *

 **Hey everyone. Glad to be back. Apologies, so much, for keeping you all waiting for so long. This chapter is a little short compared to my previous works but I wanted to get something out semi-quick you know. These last several months had put me in either quite a dampened mood or different events in video games that were only available for a limited time that I just focused on one thing or another, from finishing up my time in college, battles for the internet and all, and just a slight uninterested mood that left me not as willing to write a whole lot. My need to write has always been there, just not as much so at different times I only get a couple hundred words done a night and that's about it.**

 **Sorry again for the wait. To make up for it, I'm going to get to work on the next couple chapters of this story before moving onto the other stories in a regular schedule.**

 **Here are the reviews:**

 **BraveSeeker3:** Yeah, those two clones are pretty awesome. I do plan for Mat to have some form of changes to the original plot line. 99 being alive seems like one of the better options you know? Also your going to have to be more specific in on what Mat did. If your talking about the firefight he was in and launch a massive force wave against the droids, just his feelings and need to survive getting the better of him.

 **Seruis:** I'm glad to hear that. It's one thing to write a fanfiction in an already established universe buts its another to get someone who has never seen the show before to take a bit of an interest in it. I'm glad to hear that and hope things continue to be alright as the story progresses.

As for my favorite weapon, I am not really sure. If your talking about a specific set of weapons like firearms or melee weapons then you'd have to be more specific in the question but if you mean just in general, then out of all I think I prefer swords to be honest. Just the sheer elegance of the blades just looks awesome and appeals to me.

 **Bluebutterfly:** Ah, so you're the guest that informed of the Jedi ranks in the clone army. Thanks again for that. You'd be right as well.

 **Shadow Solaris:** Yeah, gotta have some scenes where Mat makes some changes to the original and 99 being alive is one I'm sure a lot of people, and myself, liked. And thanks for the ship correction. To be honest I was trying to identity what that ship was but I was having a debate between the two you mentioned. Guess I was wrong. Gotta be more observant in the future.

 **Zorua1:** Yeah, I'm happy with that too. You're on the right track, if I know what your implying.

 **Guest:** Thanks you.

 **Cf96:** I try.

 **Guest:** I'll do what I can.

 **Guest:** You and me both.

 **Jake:** That would be spoiling for the future. But it's a possibility.

 **Ironknight3307:** You'd be right on the weapons former ownership. And yes, Mat will be with his Master when he meets the Duchess, as well as dealing with many of the fights and tribulations that come with the terrorist organization Death Watch.

 **Again everyone, sorry for the wait. Since I don't have anymore classes, my free time should still be apparent so besides my mood things should be progressing steadily.**

 **Thank you all for your support. I don't deserve it but I'll be damned if I'm going to disappoint you all. Or at least I won't try to anyway. Nonetheless, I'll get to work immediately. As always, have fun reading everyone and most of all have a great day to each and every one of you.**


	9. 8 Jedi Crash

No rest for wicked when it comes to war. The fighting between the Republic and Separatists has not waned in the least with all the continued fighting. The Droid army continues to use underhanded tactics to decimate Republic fleets, such as the one that is currently taking place where Jedi Knight Ayla Secura and her fleet have been ambushed by an overwhelming force of droid cruisers. Now as the ship she's currently in is being completely torn apart, she can only watch and wait for the back-up she requested to arrive.

"Our shields are gone." Just as the clone technician says that, a series of explosions rocks the ship a little from the droids continued fire on them.

"Hurry, Skywalker. We're depending on you." Master Jedi Aayla Secura hopes as the situation continues to look bleak for her and her men. Soon after she says that does their reinforcements come out of hyperspace.

Anakin Skywalker's cruiser, the Resolute, comes out of hyperspace with others and immediately they open fire on the droid ships while getting ready to help. "Prepare the gunships." Anakin orders his men to do as he, Rex, and his Padawan head down to the hanger bay. He also keys in his commlink to elsewhere on his ship. "Prepare the Consular. We're going to need it to escape Aayla's ship." He orders and after getting a confirmed reply, he cuts off the comm and focuses on hurrying to the gunships.

Meanwhile, on the droid flagship of the current battle, a T-series Tactical droid issues his next order. "We have them now. Send in the super droids." Following his orders, airlocks open up on the sides of their ships and rocket pack B2 Super droids jump out of sections of their ships and head straight for the outnumbered Jedi cruiser.

"Commander, get out there and stop those droids." Aayla Secura orders the commander of her men to do as they watch the droids land on and in holes of their ships hull.

"I'm on it." Commander Bly wastes no time to rally his 327th Star Corps troopers and repel their invaders.

Meanwhile, Ahsoka, Anakin and a few squads of clones in gunships gear up to provide backup. "We're ready, admiral." Anakin calls out and that's the signal for their gunships to prepare to take off.

"General, Skywalker's here." The clone technician back on Master Secura's ship calls out once they finally have eyes on their reinforcements.

"And none too soon. We're entering the atmosphere." Relief is in Aayla's voice as now the pressure is a little off them at the moment now that theirs more of their allies there to fight.

In the skies between the cruisers on both sides, LAAT gunships from Anakin's fleet exit their ships and head down to Aayla's ship for that backup. Unfortunately, its not a smooth run as the rocket droids originally attacking her ship change targets and move to intercept the gunships.

"Rocket droids incoming." A clone pilot for one of the gunships calls out as the droids shift their focus to the new arrivals. Rockets fly out from the gunships to intercept the droids and as they strike one, the explosions take out several more. But there are just too many of them.

"Those droids are boarding Aayla's ship." Anakin points out but as he does, one rocket droid tries to take out their own pilot. "Take care of that flanker. I'll be on board Aayla's cruiser."

"Master, are you sure that's the wisest thing—" Ahsoka's warning and caution falls flat as she watches her master jump out of the ship and proceeds to use a rocket droid to land on Aayla's ship sooner rather than later. While he does that and tears a swatch through the droid invaders, the clone pilot of his Padawan's gunship is able to escape from the droid attacking him where he is pulled inside by his brothers. Without anyone to pilot their ship, being damaged too, they head straight for Aayla's ship at a hazardous flight path at full speed.

"Hey, kid."

"I know, I know! I'm hanging on." Ahsoka replies loudly back to Rex as she grips the insides of the gunship as hard as she can with the other occupants doing the same.

Fortunately, instead of crashing into the solid hull of the ship, they hit a broken section of the hull and pass halfway into a hallway where they are able to disembark without much trouble. Immediately they are beset by droids but Ahsoka and Rex are quick to begin dispatching them before the rest of the men jump down and begin opening fire as well. After cutting through several more lines of droids, Ahsoka and her men are able to catch up to Anakin as he clears away a path to Aayla.

"Nice entrance, Skywalker." She comments to him after seeing the path he quickly made to her. With three Jedi ready to fight, they push forward fast. "How do you plan to get us out of this mess?"

"Well, I have a ship docking in the lower hanger as we speak." He grunts as they both run without stopping, blocking and cutting down droids with barely any issue while their men behind them nail the droids from afar but also keeping up with their generals. They continue to run for awhile until they come around to another hallway.

"Uhhh, hold it." The lone B1 droid futilely orders for the Republic forces to do but all Anakin does is simply ignite his lightsaber at the droid with a smile on his face. However the sound of doors opening behind makes the droid turn around and spot the top of a super battle droid through the opening. "Ah-haha! Your gonna get it noooooooow!" What the droid was going to say is completely cut off as its voice processor is completely ripped apart because of the blue blade that pierces its chest. Just as it goes in does the blade pull out and off comes its head in a single swipe. The others look on in a little surprise and confusion as the droid falls away to reveal Mat behind it. He deactivates his lightsaber as he simply smiles at everyone while all around behind him is the destroyed remains of the droids that were coming to intercept the Jedi. The super battle droid the B1 droid saw was cut in half but took just a few seconds too long for it to collapse after the door opened.

"Hey everyone." He happily greets them.

"Whoa. Mat, little much don't you think?" Ahsoka comments as she walks up to her friend and stares at all the cut up droid pieces.

"I have been… very bored." Is his answer to her question. No one really has an answer to that as they look at each other and the destroyed droids. "Well, the path is clear people! Let's get out of here!" He quickly tells them and waves for them to move.

"Good work Mat. Let's move people!" Anakin orders everyone and they immediately follow Mat as he leads them back to where the Consular-class cruiser is waiting for them.

* * *

"Here we are." I tell everyone as we make it to the doors leading to the ship I had arrived in. You know, as soon as I got the chance to go out on a mission, I jumped on it no matter what it was. I wasn't going to wait around anymore since after Master Windu informed me of the weapons manufacturer, it turns out it was the right one for the mysterious blaster. While I find it odd that he knew about at practically first glance, I wasn't going to explain so while the parts are being sent over I was sent on the mission. While my master took a bit of the opportunity to rest after his capture, Master Skywalker didn't want to stay so he and Ahsoka were sent to reinforce and rescue one Jedi Master Aayla Secura from an ambush. I've met the Master a few times and I always liked her so I was pretty onboard with the idea of helping. Naturally, I requested to join and they were all too willing to let me join them in the mission. So while they went with the option of boarding her ship through the front, I went with the rescue ship that we were going to use to pull everyone out and make sure they had a clear run.

"We made it." Ahsoka happily announces as she opens the door. We make it in only a few steps before a massive explosion rocks the whole ship.

"That's not good. Move it." I try to hurry everyone forward but the explosions get even worse and closer to our position.

"It's too late." I hear Master Skywalker yell behind us before a sudden weightless feeling hits me and everyone else as we go sailing forward. When I land on the floor and roll onto my back do I realize that Master Skywalker pushed all of us past the doors into the other ship with a massive force push.

"Master!"

"Master Skywalker!" Ahsoka and I call out to him just as the door closes between us and him. A few seconds later we hear and feel a massive explosion past the door we just came through, where Master Skywalker still is. "No!" I shout and run up to the door with Ahsoka.

"Don't move the ship!" She orders the pilots of the escape ship we are in.

"Are you guys all right down there?" The clone pilots ask but we don't have time to answer. Ahsoka quickly opens the door but its damaged so it only opens up partway, only allowing her to see in and find her master in bad condition. That doesn't stop us though from turning on our lightsabers and cutting a hole through the door together. As soon as the metal gives way, we knock it down and pull the injured Jedi through to us.

"Ahsoka, Mat, we have to leave now." Master Secura hurries us as the destruction of the ship gets even worse. "Hurry. Get him on the ship." She helps us pull him in until finally we are out of the doomed flaming wreckage of Master Secura's former ship and in the Consular ship I arrived in, perfectly useable. Now that we are here, I want to keep it that way. While they tend to our injured Master, I stand up and turn to Commander Bly.

"Commander! Get the deflector shields up! I'll head to the bridge." I order the commander.

"Roger." We both sprint down the hallways and promptly split up where he heads to where the deflector shield controls are and I to the bridge.

The rocking and small explosions of the ship around us are a great incentive for me to get to the bridge in no time at all. The doors slide open as I come sprinting in. "Get us out of here!" I order the pilots.

"Gangway release." The pilot quickly releases us from the ship and as soon as we pass out from under it do the deflector shields come online around us.

We manage to escape from the burning wreckage of the ship and head straight back to the Resolute, as best we can in this sky battle. Commander Bly takes over one of the pilot seats while Master Secura and I monitor the rest of this place for anymore oncoming problems.

"You'll never be able to dock in the middle of this battle." Admiral Yularen informs us over the video comm in the bridge.

"We have no choice, Admiral. General Skywalker's condition may be critical. We must get him on board the Resolute." She quickly informs him of the problem we have on board with us now.

"Are all Jedi so reckless?" The Admiral asks in a frustrated tone.

"Just the good ones." Master Secura replies with a smirk.

"I'm not sure I wanna be a good one." I comment as well. No one pays any attention to me as we focus on getting to the ship and I'm alright with that. It's a close call as we soon begin docking procedures on the Resolute and almost look in the clear. "Look out!" I yell out to the side window as a strafing run of vulture droids head for us. They hit us once just before we dock in but its enough to jostle us around and unfortunately kill the pilot.

"The hyperdrive's been activated." And activate the hyperdrive while breaking a bunch of our controls.

"Shut it down."' Master Secura quickly orders us but that's what we've been doing as soon as we saw it activate.

"We can't." The commander replies.

"The systems fried." I add that its not by our own choice we can't shut down.

"General Secura, what's going on?" The Admiral sees out moment of distress.

"We're going into hyperspace. Detach! Detach!" She quickly orders us to do.

"Gangway release!" With few other options, I grab the lever connecting us to the Resolute and disconnect us from the ships.

Thankfully, we're able to get out from under the Resolute in time and have a clear run to do our forced jump. "Hoooo." To where, I don't know but that doesn't stop me sighing in relief at the close call. After a moment of basking at our escape from certain peril, my head jerks up again as I remember what happened before we boarded the ship and someone else's peril. "I'm gonna go check on Ahsoka and Master Skywalker. Commander check flight path." I quickly Commander Bly before heading out. I don't stay long enough to hear a confirmation or anything as I focus on heading back to my friends.

* * *

"Ahsoka." I call out my friends name as I walk into the infirmary. Master Skywalker remains still and unconscious on the bed while Ahsoka stands over him with concern etched onto her face and the medical droid checking his patients readings nearby. As soon as Ahsoka sees me her concerned face changes to a relieved smile seeing as I'm here. "How is he?" I quickly ask on her masters condition.

She turns back to him still saddened but focused on her masters condition. "Lots of bruising. Possibly some fractures and internal bleeding from the explosion and shrapnel."

"I have stabilized him from the worst of his injuries." The medical droid chimes in to tell us what he did. "Unfortunately I don't have the proper supplies here to help heal him back to full recovery. He needs a more advanced medical station to help him without any permanent damage. Stabilizing him is the best I can do for him at the moment." He finishes explaining before going back to making sure the equipment hooked up to Master Skywalker is working properly.

"Well, lets hope we end up somewhere close that has better supplies." I say with wishful thinking. Ahsoka doesn't answer me or reply as she continues to stare worriedly at him. I pat her shoulder as a way to comfort her. I haven't really been in her position before so I can't imagine what she might be feeling right now. I care about Master Skywalker too but he is her master, not mine, so its obvious she'd care more.

Our silence is interrupted as the door opens again to reveal Master Secura walking in. "I need you both with commander Bly up on the bridge right now." She immediately orders us to do. I'm about to go but Ahsoka stays firm in her spot.

"I should stay. Mat and Commander Bly doesn't need my help. Anakin does."

"You can help Anakin by getting this ship to safety." Master Secura offers an alternative means to thinking about the situation at hand. I'm not sure if it works because she still looks at her master for a few more seconds in silence.

"General Secura, we have a problem." Commander Bly walks in quickly and in a slight hurry. From his demeanor, must be a big problem.

"What is it, commander?"

"In our haste to escape, the navicomputer's coordinates were inputted incorrectly." He changes one of the screens to show the navicomputers trajectory. "And, we're headed right for a star."

' _Ohh, that IS a big problem.'_ Seeing as the situation is pretty dire, we all opt to head to the bridge rather than stay here since that unfortunately takes precedent. However that doesn't stop Ahsoka form looking at her Master again. I place my hand on her shoulder in a comforting gesture. "He'll be fine here. He's in safe hands." As I say that, the medical droid moves over to inspect him closely. She smiles at my attempt to help her and no longer feeling saddened, we meet the others back at the bridge.

We come back to the bridge to see Rex trying to fix things but doesn't seem to be making headway. A quick check to the controls and things are still bad. "It's no use. The navigation computer is completely fried." Commander Bly angrily states as he slams his fist into the console.

"There's no changing it from here. We're cut off from it." I add.

"Shut down all power circuits to reset the coordinates." Master Secura orders us to do. The Navicomputers coordinates were inputted during the fight but the reset will halt the hyperspace jump we are and deactivate it, stopping us from crashing into the ball of fire.

"That will cut off Anakin's life support." As Ahsoka worriedly states, we can't shut down only the Navicomputer. We have to shut down everything. Engines, life support, artificial gravity, our controls, everything. We'll be pretty vulnerable when that happens.

"I don't like it either, but it's a risk we're going to have to take." Master Secura tells Ahsoka.

"Let's do this then." I don't like it but its our only option. I head back into the doorway where I come to a screen. A few buttons and I am connected to the medical droid taking care of Master Skywalker. "We're going to have to shut down the entire ship to reset Navicomputer. Be ready and do what you can for when Master Skywalkers life support cuts off."

"Yes, sir. Thank you for the heads up." We disconnect the feed and I go to helping the others in getting ready to switch off the power. We spend a little time setting all the systems until finally we're ready to go through with it.

"We're switching off primary power units." Ahsoka announces.

"Cutting it awfully close." Bly comments and he's not wrong. According to the readings, we're getting pretty close to hitting the star and if we don't drop out in the next minute, we're fried quite literally.

"Ready to shut off auxiliary power." Master Secura announces from behind. While Ahsoka and Commander Bly sit I the pilot seats, Rex and I stand behind the seats and get ready to hold onto them because we are going to be flying real soon.

"On three." Ahsoka calls out and begins the countdown. "One… two…" My fingers grip the seat tightly. Three!" Master Secura shuts off the systems. Several things happen because of that. The lights on the console completely shut down all around us, the artificial gravity and dampeners shut down, forcing those of us not in seats to suddenly start floating and almost be forced to the back of the bridge. Without the power, the hyperdrive shuts off and we come out of the swirling blue tunnel to a blinding bright star. I can only close my eyes as Rex and I hold onto the back of the pilot seats. He's lucky because his helmet comes with a function to lessen the brightness against them so they don't get blinded.

"We're out of hyperspace. Resume all power." Bly orders for Master Secura to do so we can regain control and not crash into the star. Just before she can, the part of the chair Rex was hanging on to breaks off.

"Rex!" My hands shoots out and grabs his hand before he can fly back and slam into the back of the bridge. Instantly I can feel the pressure on my arms as try to hang onto him with one hand and the other onto the chair. "Arhh! Master… hurry!" I shout to Master Secura. Rex is not a light man and I feel like my arms are going to pop out of their shoulders. Relief soon floods me as she manages to restore power and we hit the ground. "Ahhhh… thank you." I hiss at the soreness in my shoulders.

"You alright, sir?" Rex asks me once he picks himself up.

"Yeah, Mm, yeah I'm good. Sore but fine." I reassure him as I roll my shoulders. Looking out the front windows, we manage to angle ourselves away from the burning ball and to another planet, bringing us out of immediate danger.

"Well, we're not going to crash into the star, but we're going to hit that planet." Ahsoka points out.

"I think I prefer a planet rather than a ball of fire." I voice my opinion of the somewhat preferred situation. Even so, we're still coming in pretty hot against the planets surface so this will not be pleasant experience either way. "Brace for impact!" I shout to everyone. Ahsoka and Commander Bly strap themselves into the seat while I lower myself and brace myself against the seat. _'This is going to be rough!'_

* * *

"Ow." I groan as I rub my head.

"You alright, Mat?" Ahsoka asks me. We spent a bit of time in getting our bearings after the crash; gathering equipment, checking the wounded, cobbling together a makeshift set of shelters for us. All in all the sun begins to set by the time we're done and while we seem pretty set, we're stranded and we have a much more pressing concerns. I am sitting next to the entrance of Master Skywalkers makeshift shelter while I hold a bump on the side of my head.

"Yeah, I'm good. A small headache but nothing serious." When we crashed, everyone was jostled around pretty harshly in the ship. I shouldn't have placed myself so close to the chair as the shaking made me hit the side of my head against the back of the metal seat. I had a bad headache that's turn to a dull one now but damn did it hurt like crazy. Still, I'm not the one in a dire situation. Master Secura walks on by to check on Master Skywalker.

"Anakin doesn't have much time. We have to find help tonight." Master Secura says after checking on him.

"Okay, you, Mat and Bly go south. Rex and I will stay here with Anakin." Ahsoka proposes we do.

"No, Ahsoka. In order to get help quickly, we must work together." Master Secura has a different idea on the matter.

"I can't leave him. Master, I know if I was hurt, he'd never leave me behind." Ahsoka tries to argue back. This is her master afterall so I'm not surprised she'd want to stay.

"I know this is hard, Ahsoka, but Anakin has to stay behind and Matthew has a head injury, we have to go now." She firmly states on the direness of the situation, even using my full name instead of my nickname, before her voice returns to a calm one. "There is nothing more we can do for him. We must do all we can to get off this planet. As a Jedi, it is your duty to do what is best for the group." She reminds Ahsoka of that little bit. I don't like it as much myself and I am fit enough to go but I don't really feel like arguing at the moment. We do need to find help ASAP. Ahsoka looks down sadly at her unconscious master before walking off and staring off into the distance. I walk over to her and let out a sigh of breath.

"She's… not wrong." I begin to say. "We'll get nowhere staying here and Master Skywalker can't be stabilized without the medical droid. The faster help is found, the better." I do what I can to explain to her what we need to do. She sighs at my words before nodding.

"General Secura, look. We're not the only ones here on this planet." Commander Bly comes to the master with a stone tablet that doesn't look naturally made. Not if the pictures carved into it are anything to go by. "There has to be some kind of something here." Just as he finishes saying that, loud squeals and some kind of animal sounds I think can be heard all around us. I grip my lightsaber in my hand tightly while the clones turn on the flashlights ono their helmets. "If you don't mind me asking, General Secura, where exactly are we going?

"To go find the people who live on this planet." She answers.

"Where are we going to find them? We have no idea where they are." He asks.

Ahsoka takes the tablet from the master and looks at closely. "It seems to me that the people we're looking for live near giant trees." Ahsoka surmises from the tablet before playing it in her pack.

"Very perceptive, padawan." Master Secura compliments her.

"Alright, we're not alone here. That much is fact. Whether their friendly or not, that remains to be seen. Rex and I will stay with Master Skywalker. We don't know what this planet has in terms of life, both wild and civilized. I'm fit enough to go with you all but I do know you two are much faster than me. Combat is more my specialty and I can make sure Master Skywalker is safe with both Rex and I. We can't move him, but we can't leave him under protected either."

"Hm, very well, Mat. Just make sure to becareful."

"I will." I reassure Master Secura. Ahsoka looks at her master one more time.

"Be strong, master, just a little bit longer. Mat and Rex will watch over you."

"It is time to go." Master Secura tells Ahsoka and she nods.

"Don't worry, kid. We'll take good care of him." Rex accentuates the fact as he holds up his blaster.

"We got this." I do what I can to assure her everything's going to be good too.

"Captain Rex, keep your locator on. We should be back by daybreak with whoever or whatever lives on this planet." Master Secura orders him as she, Ahsoka and what little of our troops are left prepare to move out.

"Got it, General Secura. Hey, kid, good luck." He wishes Ahsoka luck.

"Be careful out there." I say to her as well. She nods back to the both of us.

"Come on, guys. Let's move out." She orders and they begin their way out of our little encampment. Now, all we can do is simply rest and wait.

* * *

Several minutes pass as the group moves on in hopes of finding the help they presume to still be on the planet, and hopefully not too far away. While the clones remain silent and focused on their surroundings, Ahsoka has a distant look about her and the Jedi Master Aayla Secura takes note of the young Padawans distraction. "I can still sense your worry for Anakin, your attachment to him." She says.

"It's just… I get so confused sometimes. It's forbidden for Jedi to form attachments, yet we are supposed to be compassionate." Ahsoka explains her confusion a little to the master. That is kind of a conundrum when it comes to the way of the Jedi. Your not supposed to form attachments to others less those feelings develop into something more sinister down the line, yet at the same time they are supposed to be caring, considerate and compassionate to others, which in turn may lead to those attachments forming. Her confusion is well established.

"It is nothing to be ashamed of, Ahsoka. I went through the same process when I was your age with my own master." Aayla recalls her own experiences.

"Really? You?" She asks the Master Jedi with a bit of surprise.

"He was like a father to me. I realized that for the greater good, I had to let him go. Don't lose a thousand lives just to save one." Aayla carefully warns the young padawan.

"Maybe… But that doesn't mean that I can't try to save his life." She says hopefully. They delve back into a small silence again for a little bit until something pops into Aayla's mind.

"You know, when Mat recommended for himself to stay, I figured you might have said for him to come with me, rather than yourself. Despite him being minorly injured." Aayla comments to Ahsoka. She was before in fact willing to stay with her Master but now not as much.

She offers her fellow Jedi a smirk. "True, I was thinking about it. But he wasn't kidding when he said we were faster than him. When me and him would train together, I was always the fastest between the two of us and could almost dance around him if I worked at it but he… he is tougher than me I'll admit. Our sparring sessions usually end with either a stalemate or I win once and then he the next and so on. If there's anyone I know and trust when it comes to protecting my Master, its him. Even with the bump to his head. Not like he uses it much." She good heartedly gests the last part about her friend.

* * *

"Achooo!"

"Bless you."

"Thank you." I thank Rex. For some reason I sneezed out of the blue and I don't really know why. It's not even cold out, not with the fire we have next to us like this. _'Weird.'_ I think before sniffling and looking around.

"Well, the fires out. That's good." I comment as I see the fire on the ship has completely burned out, leaving our fire pit and the lantern next to Master Skywalker the only illumination, plus the moon.

"Yeah. Don't want anyone coming to check it out to be honest." Rex comments as he checks out his carbine. He and I both have the DC-15S as our weapons. Their pretty beat up from the crash but still work out well for us to use. Hopefully we won't have to but that's wishful thinking. "How's the head, commander?"

"Better. The bump is sore but I'm not that dizzy anymore."

"That's good. Sorry we couldn't scrounge anymore medical supplies for you."

"It's fine. Master Skywalker is more important, what with his far smore serious injuries and all." Since the Medical droid was destroyed in the crash, we can't get an accurate description of his current condition after the crash but so far he doesn't seem to be any worse for the wear. We can't properly stabilize him so hence the reason for the need to find help. Hopefully they'll return with help soon. The sounds we heard earlier don't make me fond of the possible wildlife living here. My fears are well founded as we begin to hear sounds coming around us. I grab my rifle and heft it up as Rex turns on his flashlights. "You heard that right?"

"Yeah, I did. What do you think it was?"

"Not sure. I can… sense something out there but I can't figure out who or where." Just as I say that, I hear more rustling coming from the opposite side of our camp, behind the little metal tent of Master Skywalkers. I aim that way. "Over there. Stay here. Protect the General while I check it out."

"Roger that." Rex agrees and I carefully begin walking to where the sounds came from. I give a glance to Master Skywalker as I pass by him. As soon as I make it to the edge of our camps clearing, the feeling I heard before seems to start to fade away, even as I slowly move into the tall grass.

"Huh. Who or whatever that was, their gone." I slowly lower my weapon.

"Aaarhhh!"

"Rex!" I turn right around and begin sprinting back to the front of the camp. What I happen upon is some kind of large bird creature attacking Rex. "Hey!" I yell in hopes of getting its attention away from the Captain but its firmly set on him as it tries to bite through his armor. I pull up my carbine and I'm about to shoot but the monsters thrashing kicks up a lot of dirt and one of its hind legs throws a rock at me. "Arh!" I yell as the rock breaks apart on me and blinds me with dirt. While I can't see, that doesn't stop me from firing in their general direction but I know I miss. Whatever that thing was, it eventually runs away from the loud blaster fire I give and gives us some breathing room. I'm furiously rubbing my eyes to clear the debris until I'm able to get at least my left eye clear enough to see. "Ow. Rex, you alright?" I quickly ask him.

"Yeah, I'm good. What about you?" He manages to pull himself up with his carbine in hand.

"Somewhat."

* * *

After using some water to gently flush my eyes, I'm able to see again but still a little sore and my eyes sting still. Even so, after the quick attack we were hit with, we've been placed on full alert. Rex told me Master Skywalker was able to awaken and warn him of the attack but just barely. He's sleeping now so the both of us are sitting in front of his shelter and keeping an eye out for anything that may be hostile against us. From the sounds and rustling of the grass we see and hear around us. I do what I can to sense where they are but the headache and my stinging eyes make it hard for me to concentrate. Soon the minutes turn to some hours and the tenseness of the atmosphere around us is painful. Every so often I can sense those things around us but only barely. Not to mention the sounds. Their testing us and checking to see who their prey is. We're definitely not facing one anymore.

"I don't like this." I mumble, incredibly bored but also incredibly paranoid as the sun has already lifted up and shining over the land. It's morning so hopefully the others will get here.

"Yeah same here. Why haven't they attacked again?" Rex asks.

"The first one attacked when you were alone. Now that we aren't moving away from each other, I think their either waiting for more of their own to join or waiting for the right moment to attack." I explain the best I can. That's my best assumption when it comes to predators trying to gauge their prey.

"Well, I don't like it."

"Me neither." We finish talking and remain silent for a little bit. It's when I see movement that gets my attention. "Master!" Just not from a source I was expecting. Master Skywalker groans and grunts as he tries to make his way out of his resting area. Rex and I immediately go to him.

"General, you need to maintain your rest." Rex advises him to do.

"Please Master. Don't strain yourself."

"I can't rest. Rex, Mat, they're coming. I can hear them. We must… fight." He struggles to say the last part. Just as he does, the cry of those creatures makes itself known to us. As much as I don't want Master Skywalker to injure himself anymore than he already is, fact of the matter is our stalkers reveal themselves to us as after their cry, they crawl out menacingly through the grass and stare at us with deadly intent. Theirs three of them, and three of us. Can't really argue with the odds as Rex and I aim our blasters while Master Skywalker ignites his blade.

We don't say anything or give any orders as they let out one last shriek and charge us. Rex and I immediately open fire and our shots ring true as two are taken down without trouble. The third one though isn't affected by its friends deaths as it continues to charge us. I barely manage to get another shot off but the thing is too close and fast as my shot only grazes its side. I expect Master Skywalker to slash at that thing but it moves too fast for his injured body and crashes into us. All of us, plus the shelter, go flying off in different directions as it barrels into us with ease. I grunt as I tumble through the air and roughly land on the ground. The flipping and rough landing don't make my headache any better. "Craaaahh!"

"Whoa!"

*Crang*

Especially when that thing decides to try to munch on my face. My weapon flies up as it pounces on me, my carbine being the only thing that keeps its jaws from crushing my head. I am pinned to the ground while the animal tries to bite me but can't get its jaw around my blaster. That still doesn't stop it from slowly crushing the weapon and ever so slowly pushes itself closer and closer to me. _'Ohcrapohcrapohcrap! I need help here!'_

"Mat!"

"Ahsoka!" My thoughts are answered as I hear her beautiful voice in my moment of imminent demise. I hear a couple blaster shots go off but they miss. That's all I need though as it finally lets go of me and looks up at the new arrivals. Not wanting to be under it anymore, I quickly push it further up and away from me first before bringing my legs up and launching both my feet directly at the underside of its head. This dazes and makes it step away from, giving me room to move now. Rolling backwards onto my hands, I push up and throw myself away from the animal before landing with my lightsaber in hand. "About time you got here!" I reply, a little more forcefully and angrily that I would have liked but this whole situation has been more than I would have liked.

"We found help!" She quickly tells me and before I question who, this little monkey thing, not sure what, with a red hat and clothing rolls past us and jumps all over the animal before it attaches a rope to one of its legs. Before he can get away, the animal pushes him away and prepares to pounce on him. Ahsoka quickly takes the initiative and runs up to the animal, scaring it as she holds her green lightsaber right up to its face. I move in to help.

"No, don't." For some reason, the little guy stops us from killing it for some reason and gets up before he grabs and pulls the rope.

"What?" I ask in confusion at what he's doing. The animal doesn't try to move and instead forces its feet down to keep itself stable. From the angle, if the rope is pulled with enough force, the animal will fall to the ground and leave it vulnerable.

"Fine." Ahsoka says and she joins in helping him pull. Soon Rex manages to pick himself up helps out too in the pulling. One last push is all that's needed to topple it so I take a more direct approach. Turning off my lightsaber, I run forward towards the animals side where I drop kick its other front leg. This works as even though the animal is really strong because I barely move it, the hit is all that's needed to make the creature fall on its side when they pull its other leg out from under it. As I lay on the ground, the little guy runs up and proceeds to tie up the animal so it won't hurt us anymore. The threat passed, I let myself lay down on the ground in relief.

"Finally." I groan.

"Good work, little guy." I hear Ahsoka compliment the new arrival before walking over to me. "You okay?" She asks me as she holds her hand out to me.

I smile and take the offered hand. "Very good… now that you're here." I tell her as she picks me up. She smiles back at me before she notices her master trying to get up. "Master!" She cries out and we run up to him to help.

"Master, are you okay?" I ask as he groans. That was a hard hit we all took and I'm worried about his injuries now.

"I'll live." He answers me when he lays back in a more comfortable position and looks up at Ahsoka. "Good to see you, snips." He greets her.

"This is Wag Too. He's a healer. He can make you well again." She gets right down to it and introduces the new arrival we have that helped take down the animal non-lethally, interesting enough. He walks up to us and smiles at Master Skywalker as he pulls out a pouch.

"Don't you worry. I can fix you right up." He says.

"Don't forget him. He's hurt too." Master Skywalker says as gestures to me, making Wag Too pause and look at me.

I shake my head, wincing a little, "Focus on him first. I'm not the one that took an explosion to the face and was thrown about like a rag doll." I say as I smirk to him. He groans as he remembers what happened that led to his current condition.

* * *

That Wag Too is something else. Ahsoka said he was a healer and that's not jest right there. Whatever chemicals and herbs he used was enough to stabilize Master Skywalker into a more comfortable state for transporting to his village. While the others were working on the stretcher, Wag Too came over and took a look at me head. Nothing too serious but any worse and I might have gotten a concussion.

In any case he went ahead and wrapped my head in some bandages and whatever they were coated offered a cool feeling to them and already the headache has been dulled considerably. After he was finished checking with me and they finished with the stretcher, we immediately gathered what equipment we could set out for the Lurmen village, as our medics species is called. With an already mapped out idea of the path to the village, we made great time and were able to make it there a lot sooner than when the first group left.

After a small incident where Master Skywalker was slightly mobbed a curious group of the lurmens, we moved him to some sheltered pod housing where he was given a more powerful form of medicine to help finally speed up his recovery.

Now, I, Ahsoka and Master Secura are on a small hill area overlooking the village. I have to admit, this planet may be isolated fairly well from the rest of the galaxy but wow does it have quite the view and thriving community. The sun peaking out over the horizon casts a beautiful glow over the surrounding area and the lurmen village is quite massive with pods hollowed out and housing over dozens of familys. It's nice to be in a place that isn't ravaged by war.

"You were right all along, Master Secura." Ahsoka speaks up to the master Jedi.

"About what?" She asks and I want to know too.

"If I had stayed with Anakin, we probably wouldn't have found this village in time to save him. At least this whole ordeal is over now." She finishes speaking with relief in her voice.

"You and me both." I say and lay myself on the soft ground.

"You didn't have it any easier did you?" Ahsoka asks. I nod from my spot on the ground.

"Nope." I reply while I pop the 'p'.

"I'm glad you were able to hold your own with the captain and Skywalker." I smile at Master Secura's words. "We still have to find a way off this planet." She points out to us. While it is nice to relax, she's right. We need to find a way back to the Republic.

"One step at a time." I mutter. I think after the near death experiences we sustained in the short amount of time from the beginning of the sky battle to now we can afford a little bit of a respite for ourselves.

"Yeah. Besides, I'm sure admiral Yularen and the Republic fleet are looking for us. It shouldn't take them too long to get here." Ahsoka points out.

"That's true. We weren't exactly subtle in our forced departure. It shouldn't be too hard for them to find out jump trajectory." I say hopefully before I push myself up. Sitting up, I am staring full on at the sun now and it still looks breathtaking. "Just a little patience."

* * *

 **Hey everyone, new chapter. Hope you all like it. Their isn't anything major going on in this episode that anyone should take note of. Just something to get out and for Mat to be a part of. At first I was debating how exactly Mat should be a part of the boarding party for Aayla's ship until I remembered the ship they used to escape from and decided, "Hey, maybe Mat can clear the way for them." I liked how it turned out and I hope you all liked it too. Not much else to say but that I'm gonna put out one more chapter and then work on the rest of my other stories. As you can tell, its going to be the conclusion to the lurmen village. Don't know when I'll get the chapter out but hopefully it'll at least be within the time of this month.**

 **Here are the reviews:**

 **Ironknight3307:** Can't be certain. I've only vaguely seen and barely read some parts of legends but not a lot. Most of what I've heard is from YouTube videos touching up on some interesting points here and there. Overall though, just as long as you've seen the clone wars series you'll have a pretty good and comfortable idea of how things are going.

 **Shadow Solaris:** Yeah, it was interesting to see and read up more on the particular blaster and now it's going to be amazing for Mat to restore the weapon to its former glory and use on his opponents. One thing I will say, it is by far my favorite blaster in the entire Star Wars series mostly for how it looks and just the sound it makes when it fires. I'm talking about the sound during the Battle of Geonosis just before Jango was killed. Awesome sounds.

 **BraveSeeker3:** Yeeeaaaah, sorry again for the long delay in the stories updating. When I reread your review, I had a feeling something like this might happen and again I'm sorry. Still, I don't think its anything too major or anything to worry about.

Yes, he found his pistol. Gonna be good when he uses it again. For Boba… we'll see.

 **Vulcan Stormblade:** … *Cricket sounds*… Well, he's going to repair the blaster, and then use it on his enemies. I'm sure plenty of droids are going to be felled by that blaster and his lightsaber wielding enemies will have a tough time defending against his onslaught.

 **Grimlock987:** Yes, yes it is.

 **Cf96:** And thank you as always.

 **Storm dragon king (Ch.1):** Thank you and I hope the rest of the story is to your satisfaction as well.

 **In any case, thank you all for the support here and hopefully things will progress smoothly from here on out. Go ahead and fave, follow, review, whatever it is you want to do but most of all, have fun reading and have great day everyone.**


	10. 9 Defenders of Peace

Serene. This planet sure has that feeling. We're still stranded and stuck on this planet but overall things are still alright for us. Those animals still haven't attacked us now that we're in the village so the only thing we have to worry about is stepping on any of the lurmens toes, so to speak. Apparently, these guys didn't like the idea of war or fighting in general so its why they are here far away in the first place. Their pacifists in that regard so even though we're the good guys, we are still fighters in a war so its why we often get some weird looks from some of them, especially the village elder. Despite that, in the short time we've been here we've done what we can to help out around here. Mostly manual labor stuff like moving some stuff and baskets filled with fruit around, just anything that we can do to help and trying not to come off as warmongers in our war. Their still willing to help Master Skywalker and I with our injuries. They used some type of liquid grown from the pods to help in the healing process and from the conscious state Master Skywalker has been in, plus the completely gone headache I have, it's very good stuff. The elder is still wary of us considering we're fighters but I am glad he's still willing to treat our injuries. Even though Jedi are regarded as defenders of the peace, the fact that we have weapons in the first place and fight in the war directly also establishes the elders view of us being a cause and adding to the war.

The DC-15A rifle in my possession doesn't help either. After my carbine broke from the jaw of the animal, now known as Mastiff phalone, I decided to switch my weapon for a spare rifle variant. I don't expect to put it in another one of those things mouths but at the very least I'd like to keep them at a distance.

Unfortunately, that isn't the only thing I would be focusing on keeping at a distance.

"You see that?" I ask the clone next to me.

"Yeah, not good." He says as he looks through his binoculars. We decided to go about checking the perimeter to make sure we don't have any company and lo and behold, we see a droid carrier entering the atmosphere.

"Radio it in." I order him to do. The others need to know ASAP.

"On it." He keys in his commlink. "Commander Bly, we've got company."

"Friendlies?" The commander asks through the comm.

"Not even close." I mutter as I stare through the binoculars.

"Negative, sir. A droid ship coming straight our way.

"Acknowledged. Get back here."

"On our way." I reply and we cut the connection before standing up. "Let's move before we're spotted."

"Right." Rex replies and we begin sprinting back to the lurmen village as fast as we can. Even though that particular ship doesn't have any major reconnaissance moves, the faster we get back to the village, the better by far. We didn't go too far away from the village so soon enough we make it to the village just as the droid ship lands and we head straight for the pod hut that's been housing Master Skywalker.

"See to it that they leave. I must see what our new visitors want." Just as we enter, Tee Watt Kaa, the elder of the village, finishes saying and heads past Rex and I off in the direction the Separatists landed. _'Guess we're not staying here anymore._ ' Immediately we begin grabbing anything we have and brought that wasn't grown or in any way made on this planet by natural means. Namely, any blasters, backpacks, military rations, thermal detonators, and armor to name a few. Once everything is gathered, what's left is getting Master Skywalker on his feet. He grunts as he tries to stand before Rex and Bly pick him up.

"Take it easy, sir."

"We'll assist you." We waste no time in trying to get out of here because we don't have any. As soon as we step outside do we hear the distant stomping sounds of a squad of droids stepping in unison towards the village. We soon make it to the edge of the village but we have to hide behind some of the pod huts because the droids have already entered the village and begin hitting, bashing and breaking stuff, even shooting into the air to freak out the lurmen.

"Why are they tearing apart our homes? We've done nothing to them!" Wag too asks in surprise as he, Ahsoka and I peak out to stare at the carnage, not enough where we'd be easily seen. I guess when they've been living in isolation for so long, suddenly being attacked is something they're not used to.

"Violence, that's what those droids are programmed for." Ahsoka states and I don't think that's inherently, but at the very least, being ordered to do so won't make them question the morality of their actions. We continue to watch as they ransack the place. "Can't we do anything?" She asks frustrated and I am too. I really don't like just standing by and doing nothing but we needed to leave before we were spotted. Doing something kind of defeats the purpose of leaving.

"No, and if we are discovered all of the Lurmen will be slaughtered." But Master Secura makes a good point as to why we are leaving in the first place.

"We'll be okay if we make it to the tall grasses." Without much else for us to do here, we follow Master Skywalkers advice and retreat into the grass and out of sight of the droids.

Once we're sufficiently enough away, Wag Too goes back to his people, mostly to see how things went and to hopefully help with any injuries. _'I hope their weren't any. Those Lurmen may be stubborn and set in their beliefs but they don't deserve to be hurt.'_ Still, we're plenty alright so even though we're a little slowed down by Master Skywalker at this point, he just needs rest then he'll be back in proper fighting condition, we head as far away from the village as we can to the point where we are sure we won't be spotted by droids but hopefully able to go back and help should things get dicey. We take a moment to rest in a small section of cleared grass and come up with a plan to get off this planet.

"You know, I can't figure those villagers not wanting to fight." Rex speaks up while Ahsoka and I sit on the ground munching on some rations. "No pride I guess." He bitterly says.

"I call it no courage." Ahsoka voices her opinion too.

"Sometimes it takes courage to stick to one's beliefs, young padawan, as any Jedi well knows." Master Secura reminds us. They could be scared of fighting to the point that things would get worse if they do fight so opting to stay out of fighting would be the way to go in hopes of not escalating things.

"Well, I call it no choice." I add my own opinion on the matter. "I don't know about you but the Lurmen don't really come off as fighters to me. Seems like not fighting is the best thing they can do."

"Whether they fight back or not won't really help us now." Master Skywalker speaks. "We need to find a ship, and I think the only one around here belongs to the Separatists. We know they have a landing ship. They might have a shuttle." He surmises.

"Sir, you talking about stealing from one of the clankers? Count me in." I'm not really surprised that Rex is all that interested in stealing from our enemies. I'm not opposed to it either.

"We need to find them first." Master Secura says. To be honest, that doesn't seem like a hard thing to do. That ship was pretty big so it shouldn't be too hard to find where it landed.

"I think we just did!" Ahsoka points out something more pressing we have right now. A floating scout droid is revealed to have been spying on us and takes flight.

"Blast it!" Master Skywalker orders and those of us carrying blasters open fire. Rex, Bly and I try to take the droid down but the thing is slippery as it quickly evades our shots and ducks back into the grass, cutting our line of sight.

"Jam its signal!" Master Secura orders and Bly complies.

"After it!" Ahsoka calls out and we plus the clones start sprinting after the droid. The droid doesn't have that much power to get it to fly over the tall grass and it isn't strong enough to push through the tall grass. Flying along the pathways of the grass is the best option for it. At least for us it just means we have to catch up to it.

"Which way did it go?" Until we come to a small split in the paths as we try to figure out which way it went.

"Split up. I'll go this way, you three that way!" I quickly order everyone and begin running towards the right.

"You heard him. Hurry!" I hear Ahsoka say and they take off down their path.

As I run as fast as I can down my path, I keep hearing it whir as it moves along the cleared grass pathways but I can't see it. It sounds close but continues to feel so far away everytime. "Screw it." I slip the strap of my rifle to my back and push through the thick grass in hopes of cutting through as a shortcut. While my speed is reduced, I hope the cut distance will more than make up for it. I do what I can to hear the machine as it floats on by but its hard to do. It's when I hear Ahsoka's lightsaber turn on do I get an accurate place of where they are. I push forward as hard as I can towards where I hear the running and humming of the droids flight. Looking to the top of the grass, I smile as I spot the top of the droid scout. "There you are!" I shout triumphantly and push the last leg of it just in time. "Come here!" I yell as I burst out of the grass as I jump through, grabbing the legs of the scout before it passes me.

"Mat?!"

"Nnnhhh! Your not getting away from me!" I grit my teeth and grunt as I dig my feet into the ground and hold on tightly as the droid can be heard whirring loudly as it desperately tries to get out of my clutches. A quick look to my left shows Ahsoka and the clones standing several feet away with Master Secura on my right. "What are you waiting for?! Take it down!" I yell as my grip begins to slip and my feet ever so slowly slide across the ground. All four of everyone goes into action. The Clones open fire and each fire one shot, impacting the side of the droid but not killing it. At the same time, the Jedi sprint forward with their lightsabers ignited and Ahsoka strikes first, cutting its legs off and forcing me to step back while Master Secura finishes it off with a saber swipe right down the middle, completely destroying it. With the possible threat of discovery gone, we take a moment to breathe from the sprint we just did. I drop the legs in my hands and take ins some deep breaths. "Wow, nice one."

"You too." Ahsoka replies back to me with a smile before staring at the wrecked slightly sparking remains of the droid. "I wonder where it was headed."

"Maybe we can see them from up there." Master Secura points out to the top of the tall tree we are nearing. As good a place as any to get the lay of the land. With a destination in mind, we go ahead and begin the climb up the tall tree. Although some more than others. I'm talking about Master Skywalker. While us healthy Jedi can simply jump the long distances up, and the clones have the ascension cables on their blasters, Master Skywalker still hasn't fully recovered from his injuries so getting him up the tree was… interesting and complicated.

Nonetheless, even though I still have the weird feeling we are being watched, all of us are up the large tree and staring out the horizon towards where our enemies are. "I hope you're feeling better, Master, 'cause look what we found." Ahsoka grimly tells her master and hands him her binoculars. He's not going to like what we're seeing.

"I'm getting stronger all the time, snips." He boasts before it disappears as soon as he sees what we found. "But I'm not sure I'm ready for that." _'I was right.'_ Using my own binoculars, I spot the small shuttle parked deep inside the base. "That shuttle's our ticket off this rock." He notices it as well. That's as close a ship as we're going to be able to take to get us off this planet and back to Republic space.

"It's not gonna be easy, sir. There don't seem to be any flaws in their security line." Rex points out. While that is something that might pose a problem for us later on, I can't help but notice the small tank column and squads amassing outside the base.

"Well that's an interesting design." I comment as I see the oddly designed droid tank coming out of the base.

"Apparently, the Separatists have a new toy." Master Skywalker sees it too. "Mat, you're our weapons, vehicles and tech expert. Got any ideas?"

I smile at the compliment and his assessment of me. "The Armored Assault Tank, or AAT for short. Lots of small blaster cannons for sustained fire with a massive heavy laser cannon on a turret in order to aim anywhere while stationary. A common vehicle in the Separatist army with little to no known variations to its design… until now." After my brief explanation, I put down the binoculars and look at everyone else. "That… is an entirely new weapon down there and I have no idea what its capable of." I look again, "Especially since it looks like they forgoed the most powerful weapon on the tank to put… whatever that is, there."

"Anything new from the droids can't be good." Master Skywalker says before looking at Bly. "See if you can get a closer look."

"Yes, sir."

"I'll go with you, Commander." Rex volunteers to go with. Bly doesn't object to the help from his brother.

"I got you guys covered from up here." I tell them and pull the rifle from my back before taking a kneeling position. They nod and begin to descend down the tree. While they move to scout out the new weapon, I begin fiddling with the sights to help with my accuracy, as well as making sure the cells are working and fully charged so if I need to fire, I won't have any problems. "There we go." I smile and shoulder the weapon, keeping an eye on the clones as they begin to make their way away from the tree.

"Is that necessary for you to have?" Master Secura asks me from the side. Ahsoka and Master Skywalker are a little further away so they aren't really part of this conversation as Master Secura moves closer to me.

"Can't be too careful, Master." I say to her as I look at her before I reshoulder my weapon and aim down the sights again. "I don't see us being able to provide much backup from here with only our lightsabers."

"They are not going to attack the enemy. Merely moving in to observe them, that's all." She counters.

"That's the intention, but things can still go wrong." I reply. "I want to keep at least something on me to help them from a distance. My lightsaber can't really help with that."

"Be careful when studying how to fight with different weapons. Your lightsaber is your true and absolute final weapon you must have and know how to use. Do not neglect your Jedi training." Master Secura reminds me of what's important for a Jedi. I know that the lightsaber is the most important weapon for a Jedi and I haven't neglected training with it. I feel like she might also be referring to my knowledge of vehicles and weapons used in this war.

"I can assure you Master, I won't forget about it. Just having a blaster on hand is nice to have options. Not every combat engagement can be used with a lightsaber. Having knowledge of the hardware we fight with and against helps too." Everyone goes into a moment of silence as we watch and wait for Captain Rex and Commander Bly to give us any useful information on what the weapon is. "Master, you see them?" I ask when I get eyes on the two droids slowly making their way towards our men.

"Uh-oh. Stay down, boys." Master Skywalker mutters. I train my sights on the droids but from this distance, I don't have much confidence in my shots being able to hit nor make it for that matter to the droids. Before we can call them to warn them about the close enemy troops, a soft boom echoes through the air. We don't need the binoculars to see some kind of large caliber artillery shot was fired from the enemy's side. We look up and watch as the shot streaks high and through the air before slowly angling downwards. We on the tree jump down to the lower branches as Rex and Bly run towards us and away from the impact location of the shell..

It's a small defining noise but the shot going through air didn't seem all that intimidating. As soon as it landed on the ground however does it reveal its devastating power. A massive circle of inferno sprouts out from the center of the landing and spreads out faster than the clones can run. Luckily, they are close enough to the tree where they fire their ascension cables to get up here and out of harms way.

"Commander!" I shout as I notice he missed his shot with his ascension cable. Taking a step forward, I aim my rifle down towards him and fire my own cable down towards him. He picks himself up after he tripped but immediately spots the cable I shot next to him. He lunges for the cable and immediately begins climbing up. "Ahh!" I grunt as his weight immediately hits me. I do what I can to hold it steady so he can climb up but my feet almost begin to slip and I can barely hold onto the rifle from my angle.

"Hold on!"

"We got you!"

The pressure is let up as Master Secura and Ahsoka grab on and begin pulling on the cord. Throwing the rifle at my feet, I grab more of the cable and help in pulling the commander up to safety. Rex soon lands next to us and with his help the commander is back up here with us and in safe hands. We all sit back on the branch and let out sighs of relief that no one was hurt. Meanwhile I grab my rifle and disconnect the spent cable attachment and toss it over the edge. "I can see you were right, Matthew." While we breathe a little at the effort, Master Secura speaks, making me look at her. "There is some benefit to carrying a blaster." Not really the best moment to have convinced her of that little fact, I smile nonetheless and nod to her.

"Uhhh, everyone?" Ahsoka says and when we look at her, she points out to the landscape where the enemy is at.

What we see is bad, very very bad. "Oh my god." I mutter in horror at the devastation that weapon caused, with one shot.

"That's some toy. It took out every living thing." Ahsoka says grimly. I'm pretty sure I see some bodies of the animals from before completely charred. I shiver at the thought of that being our men in open combat. While we admire the devastation for a bit, we soon notice the column of droids begin moving and walking elsewhere away from their base.

"Where are they off to now?" Master Secura questions.

"They must be going back to the Lurmen village. There's nothing else in that direction." Master Skywalkers assessment is on point as I remember the layout of the land we took, that is the only place of note in that direction.

"Those villagers won't stand a chance." Master Secura says and she's right. They will not lift a finger to fight at all.

"First we'll take out the droids' communication station. Then after we get a shuttle, we'll go back and help them." Master Skywalker immediately comes up with a plan for us to do, one that I can get behind.

"But Tee Watt Kaa said he doesn't need our help." Ahsoka reminds us of that little insinuation by the elder of the village. He was VERY firm in telling us he didn't need our help.

"There's a difference between pulling innocents into a war and leaving them to extinction."

' _Well put Master Skywalker.'_ "I'm good with helping. Let's be quick." I voice my support for helping the lurmens. With nods and agreements all around, we get ready to storm the Separatist base under the cover of a quickly approaching night.

* * *

Because of the Separatists move to head to the village and supposedly test out their new weapon, they left a skeleton crew of droids to protect their base. We completely cleared the place out of all droids without any trouble or being spotted, sabotaged their comms and stole the shuttle we were going to use to get off the planet. Instead, we use it to head back to the Lurmen village ahead of the main droid force with our newly acquired shield generators. They should do well for us in hopefully tanking that new weapons attack and protect the village.

It's morning by the time we make it and thankfully the Separatists haven't made it yet. We still have time to set up and get ready for the coming battle. We land and descend the ramp in the middle of the village.

"Everyone, please, please listen. The Separatists will be here in moments." Master Secura calls out to everyone and begins to warn them. Amidst the crowd of villagers gathering, I mentally groan as I spot the one that hates us the most.

"What are you doing here? I told you not to return." Tee Watt Kaa demands of us but we're not going anywhere.

"Sorry but no can do." I tell him.

"I'm afraid the Separatists don't care whether you're in the war or not. We need to get you to safety before they arrive." Master Skywalker informs him.

"We will not abandon our homes." The elder is still firmly set in staying and not fighting.

"But they've got a new weapon. It'll burn this place to a crisp. Is this what all of you really want?!" Ahsoka begins to say before yelling out the last part to everyone. Some of the villagers seem torn by the news but as always Tee Watt will not have it.

"If it is our destiny to be destroyed in your war, so be it." While Tee Watt walks away, I see the look of surprise on his sons face. Anymore and it would mirror the look of horror on my own face. I know he wanted his people to stay pacifists but he really knows that if they don't do something, he really is willing to let himself and his tribe be slaughtered? _'We can't let that happen.'_ I answer my own question. That still doesn't stop us though as we begin working on getting this place ready to be defended. While we begin to get the shield generators down from the shuttle, Rex has been set up as our scout to keep an eye out for the droids from the direction they'll be coming from.

I've never really worked on generators before so I'm not as knowledgeable of them as I would have liked. Thankfully these things aren't too complicated so it's a matter of setting the radius of the shield and the connection between the two generators we snagged. "Droids inbound." We don't get as much time as we would have liked in setting them up before Rex warns us of the enemy finally making it. "We've got eight minutes tops."

"Come on, guys. Let's get these shield generators in place!" Master Skywalker orders us to do. With as much as we could do to the shield generators given our short time, we begin placing them at key points around the village for maximum coverage without sacrificing power to the shield itself. Once they're setup, we move onto fortifying as much of the front entrance of the village as we can with whatever barricades and debris we can muster. Thankfully, there are some spare pods littered around the village not in use so we go ahead and start moving them into a large makeshift blockade in the direction the droids are coming from.

"Pray stop what you're doing! Stop building that wall." Even though we've got the entirety of the lurmen village covered from direct view from the ground with dozens upon dozens of pods stacked together, the elder still doesn't like what we're doing. "I did not ask you to defend us." He angrily states as we Jedi finish using the force to place the pod into position.

"This battle is inevitable." Master Skywalker firmly states with a tone that says 'we are not stopping' as he stares at him. "You can stand by your beliefs, but let us stand by ours." Whether its out of frustration or enough is said, Tee Watt Kaa leaves us while his son stays.

"Thank you for what you're trying to do." He thanks us, which is a refreshing change as of late. "I'm sorry, but I cannot help. My father is very strong willed and set in tradition. Many others agree with me, but we were raised under a very strict code. We must respect it, even if we don't agree."

"That's fine with us." I tell him and take a break from moving the pods. "These are our enemies. We may be outnumbered but these are the ones we fight on a normal basis. We'll be the ones to fight when you never had a stake in it to begin with." My piece said, I go back to helping the others in setting up the barricades and preparing for the coming assault. As expected, none of the lurmens came to help but I did notice a bunch of them staring at us but not with the same annoyed and angry expression as the elder but something else. Wag Too did say others of his village were in favor of us but because of their upbringing they couldn't actually help us in shoring up the defense.

Nevertheless, we do what we can with the resources we have available and once we're ready, as well as they enemy, all we can do is hope for the best. "They're holding position." Rex calls down to the others from on top of the pods with me when the enemy has finally stopped.

"They're not going to charge us, not if they can hit us from long range first. But if we can withstand that weapon, we'll draw them in." Its nice to see Master Skywalker up and about without any signs of obvious discomfort. Whatever stuff it was exactly that they had added to the bandages really did do wonders. As I think about it, my headache is completely gone at this point without any lingering or phantom pain for that matter. Still, he's right about the enemy. Their main focus is their new weapon so once they fire it will determine whether they move in or not.

As I stare at the group far away, I notice the new weapon moving. "Their aiming their weapon. Get ready people!" I call out to everyone in warning. Not long after, the defining boom of the weapon going off can be both heard and felt from here.

"Incoming!" Rex calls out and jumps down from the top of the pods with me following. We look back as we all watch the artillery shell fly high up into the air before arching down.

"Power the shields!" We waste no time in following Master Securas orders and turning on the generators. The blue and clear hum of the shield generators dome appears over us and covers the entire village. Just in time too because the shell hits the ground and the fire spreads out, right towards us. It's both beautiful and scary seeing the flames crash into the shield dome and spread out over it, noise is freaky too. Still, we manage to survive the attack.

"Now, they'll have to get their hands dirty and meet us face-to-face." We climb over the pods until we are staring at the squad of droids making their way to us, a mix of B1's and Supers.

"That's a lot of clankers." Ahsoka comments about the size of the force we are about to face. I simply smirk and put my rifle down against one of the pods before pulling out my lightsaber.

"Then its business as usual for us." I comment. It's not the first time we've been placed in a situation where we're facing off against overwhelming odds. Not deterred in the least, we step through the shield and we Jedi ignite our lightsabers to get ready to charge while Rex and Bly get ready to cover us.

"We got to stop them before they get through that shield." Master Skywalker voices our main objective: keep the enemy away from the lurmens. Easier said than done but that's not going to stop us.

Already the first wave of droids open fire on us while the majority of the force hangs back. Rex and Bly open fire on them while the rest of us charge forward. Seeing as theirs for Jedi here going up against them, the odds are better placed in our side as we deflect the shots back at the enemy with little trouble until we finally make it to them and begin cutting them down. I duck under a B1 droids attempt to shoot me before coming up in a rising slash, cutting the droid in half with a diagonal cut and letting the pieces fall to the ground. Deflecting a blaster bolt to another droid, I dash forward and run my lightsaber right into the B2's chest before spinning around the droid, tearing out my blade out the side before cutting down the B1 right behind it. The rest of the droids fall easy enough to our combined attacks until they all fall down destroyed. We take a momento breathe and examine our work.

"That wasn't so tough." Ahsoka boasts a little but the others aren't as easily impressed, neither am I. _'It's never that easy.'_

"That was just the first wave." Master Skywalker speaks and he's right. As soon as we look at the rest of the droids, we see the leader ontop of his tank wave forward, singaling the remaining squads of droids to begin their march towards us. We sprint forward to engage the droids like before. However because there are over twice as many droids as before, taking them down isn't nearly as easy since a lot more blaster fire is raining down on us so we have to be more defensive and strike when we have the opening. Because of how far we pushed, we don't have as much covering fire from Rex or Bly against the droids so its slower to take them down. As I lop off the heads of two droids, a quick look around shows that a large number of the droids have forgotten about us and are nearing the village.

"Masters! The village!" I shout over the sounds of battle as I see the enemy getting too close to the shield.

"Snips, Mat, get back to the village! I'll take care of the new weapon." With the lurmens being the priority, we agree without question, especially when Rex and Bly are forced to retreat over the pods when the enemy passes through the shield barrier. Master Secura joins in as she, Ahsoka, and I run as fast as we can back to the village, cutting as many droids down as we can along the way but a lot have already gotten into the village. Just as we pass the destroyed pod barrier, the others continue running further on while I grab my rifle lying on the ground and put it to use. I don't want to waste time and energy running around and chopping them to bits so instead I opt to shoot them from a distance. Turning off my lightsaber and gripping the blaster rifle with both hands, I get to work sniping the droids as fast as I can. Their main focus is destroying the village so it gets easy enough in popping them in the back of the heads and bodies. But I'm not concerned with myself as we barely manage to take down some droids before the giant shield dome around us disappears.

"Oh no… no. Not good!" Without the shield, theirs nothing stopping the enemy from launching that horrific artillery shell at us now that we're vulnerable. I redouble my efforts in taking down droids left and right while I hope Master Skywalker destroys that weapon soon. I spot one droid getting ready to enter a pod home and I can hear the occupants cry out. It doesn't have the chance to enter the home before one of my shots hits it right in the side of its head and making it fall to the ground to the side of the home. With them safe, I get to work in taking more of them out all over. My friends and allies have spread out all over the place in trying to secure the village but there are so many droids spread out all over the place. It doesn't take long for the droids to notice us fighting before they shift their focus to trying to destroy the lurmen and us as well. I'm forced into cover a few times as they try to shoot me but I manage to get the better of them eventually. Still, eventually isn't good enough and we need to coordinate. After passing a few houses and ushering the civilians to head to the outskirts of the village and to the tall grass, I begin to notice that some of the lurmens aren't running away from the droids but instead are moving and rolling to them. Because of their small statures and quick movements, the droids are having a tough time in getting a bead on them. "Wow." I comment at their willing to fight now as I watch them trip up droids and beat them. My moment of awe at their actions is short lived as I spot Rex hunkered down behind a pod house with droids closing in on him from multiple sides. "Rex!" I yell and head to him, firing as I go. While he's focusing on some droids to left side of the pod home, two B1's and a B2 Super moving in behind him from his blind spot. Rifle in hand, I launch a flurry of shots towards the droids, destroying the B1's with shots to the back of their heads and forcing the Super to the ground when I hit the back of its knee. The droid doesn't have the chance to turn around and shoot me before I pull out my lightsaber one-handed, stab it right into its back before I roll over it from the top and with my lightsaber cutting through it all the while until its split down the middle. "Rex, you okay?" I ask the clone as I roll into cover right next to him as I holster my lightsaber.

"I'm fine sir. But I don't know how long we can keep this u—" Before he can finish speaking, he gets a call on his communicator.

"The weapon has been disabled." Even though he has a helmet on, I can tell he has a smile on his face just like me when we hear Master Skywalker inform us that the biggest potential threat we were facing is gone now.

"Copy that, General." Rex replies and shuts off his comm before grabbing both his blaster and as one, we both pop out from both sides of the pod and begin dropping droids with precision shots. Since we no longer have to worry about getting burned to death by the Separatist weapon, we are a bit more at ease in fighting and mopping up the last of the droids in the village. With what little droids there are clustered together, the lurmens quickly use their dexterous movements to tie long lengths of rope around their legs before they toss the end of the rope with a spear through the air. Amazingly, other groups of lurmen do the same thing, connecting that same length of rope with theirs using other spears and pitchforks until finally it lands on the ground. With a mighty heave by the peaceful race, they pull the rope until every droid that was left in the village call fall down one after another. It's cleanup now as we Jedi simply use our lightsabers to run it along the ground where the droids fell and slice them to bits.

The battle has been won as cheers go out all over the place. I let out a long sigh at the quick but tough battle we endured. Not only for our safety but having to protect an entire village of civilians who at first were not willing to fight. It was a relief to see a good number of them take up arms and fight back, especially that rope trick at the end. That helped out. "Thank you, Wag Too." Master Skywalker says to the lurmen once he returns to the village, with a small group of separatist commanding officers that no doubt led the attack.

"Thank you." Wag Too replies the thanks. "Our village would certainly have been destroyed without your protection." He turns from us to see his father walking up to us. I'm expecting to see him angry towards us but instead he has a neutral pensive look about him. "Father, I was just offering the Jedi our thanks."

"Perhaps we do owe you thanks," I smile at his words, "But I still wonder, at what cost?" He asks in a sad tone. I think I get what he means by that. For a long time he taught his fellow villagers the benefit and importance of staying out of fighting under any circumstances and now, his people were forced to fight in order to be defended. Something that's been a staple for them for so long being broken can't be easy to swallow.

Several Republic cruisers, come out of hyperspace and begin descending on the planet. Our rides finally here, allowing a massive weight to lift off our shoulders to see friendlies now after being stuck here.

"Well, you get to live." I speak up before I turn to the elder. "And continue to live by your ideals. Should chance others come across your tribe, maybe you can convince others of what you stand for. I'm sorry our war made its way to you and you got mixed in. For what its worth, I am glad we were able to help protect you and to be honest, the galaxy just might possibly be a better place if others followed your ideals." My piece said to him, I turn and begin making my way to the outskirts of the village to hopefully try and flag down the cruisers. I turn on my lightsaber and begin waving it back and forth to hopefully get their attention.

"Well said Padawan." Master Secura speaks as she walks up to me. "Your Master would be proud of you."

I smile at the compliment as I look at her. "Thank you, Master. I'm just glad all this is over and we can get back to Republic space." I shut off my lightsaber as I spot some gunships leaving the cruisers.

"As am I, Matthew. As am I." She pats my shoulder a final time while we wait for our rides to get here.

* * *

 **I am soooooo sorry everyone. I have NO excuse for the reason why this too so damn long to write. Honestly, my drive and feeling to write just took a hit over these last few weeks and I just barely got any work done at all. To top it off, I went to RTX so that took up a bunch of my time, was fun as hell by the way but exhausting, hence even more why I wasn't feeling up to writing as much. I'm sorry about this and hopefully I'll feel the force of writing in earnest sooner rather than later.**

 **In any case, my set of chapters for this series is done so I'm going back to writing for my other stories from now on.**

 **Reviews:**

 **Storm Dragon King:** Yeah, sticking to the shows episodes is what I'll do most of all but just to make sure I don't come off as making the episode chapters into retelling of the actual episodes themselves, I do what I can to add my own stuff to it to make sure things seem at least somewhat interesting. Eventually, I'll do my own chapters sometime in the future but for now, hope you enjoy my version of the episodes.

 **Eclipsed934 (Ch.8):** Sorry for the confusion. I'm not sure if the title of the arms company is meant to be in all caps or not but the majority of all text I've seen of it have been all capitalized. Pretty much as long as you see an exclamation point "!" then you'll know when someone is angry or yelling.

 **Ironknight3307:** Mmmmm, sorry about not updating soon. Totally my bad. As for the droid, yes he will make an appearance eventually but at first I wanted him to appear on the second battle of Geonosis but now… I think I know an opportunity for him to appear early. Won't say when, but B1-218 will return, don't you worry.

 **Cf96:** Thank you very much.

 **This is something I wish to discuss with you all and that's the order in which the series is portrayed. A lot of times I've been getting mixed messages as to when happens when and so forth. As it turns out, the hostage crisis that introduced the bounty hunters but more so Cad Bane, doesn't happen until later on than when it was aired, after Bane did the holocron heist. Then theirs also the outpost destruction several chapters ago that led to the Kamino invasion even though it happened far later in the show. I'm going to be following the chronological episode order list on from now on to properly set up how I'll be going about writing. To better make sure I have everything consistent, I want some of you to go to the website, check out the list and see if everything seems on the up and up from here on out. I don't want anything being out of place for future chapters and I especially don't want to be wrong AFTER I've already posted the chapter. That would just be annoying to move the chapters around. I would appreciate the help everyone.**

 **Also one other thing, I saw the new trailer for Season 7 of Clone wars. #CloneWarsSaved. This is going to be amazing everyone.**

 **Again, I'm sorry everyone for the long delay. Hopefully it won't happen again in the future. Thank you all for your support, go ahead and fave, follow, review, whatever you want, but most of all everyone, have fun reading and have a great day.**


	11. 10 Trespass

It is so good to be back after our crash landing. Once the Republic came and grabbed us, we took our prisoners and promptly headed home where we could rest, recuperate and get proper medical treatment. Their really wasn't much that the doctors and medics needed to do for Master Skywalker and I. That stuff that the Lurmens gave us was really something else if I do say myself. Speaking of them, I'm not sure what their going to do from now on since they've been added to the war. I'm not even sure if the Republic is going to stay on the planet but if the Separatists found it once, they'll find it again. So chances are the we'll build an outpost there, or occupy the droids, as a precaution just in case.

Still, feels good to be back in the Republic and back to the war effort, which isn't really improving but at this point, I'm not really surprised. The supplies and equipment I requested and ordered was delivered back to my room at the temple and I already had gotten started in working on my blaster. Definitely an interesting and unique design if ever I've seen one and I can't wait to finish it up.

But that'll have to wait.

Something has come up with our allies on Pantora on one of the nearby planets, Orto Plutonia. One of our outposts has gone dark and while Ahsoka is back at the temple, my Master and I, Skywalker and some Pantora dignitaries are going to investigate. While the planet is pretty snow covered, its light enough for now that we are able to ride in on some gunships directly towards the base.

We land once we make it to the base and as soon as the doors open, we are blasted with freezing winds. "Geez." I grunt and bring my hand in front of my face for a bit of cover to my face. My clothing gear is similar to my Masters but I don't have the fur lining my hood, goggles like the masters and I have a small black mouth cloth covering my nose to my chin, leaving a little loose to blow in the wind below.

"And this is the planet's tropical zone." My master gests as we disembark

"Homey!" I comment sarcastically over the rushing winds.

"It's not Tatooine, that's for sure." Master Skywalker comments too. While we can see the base in the glacier close to us, its hard to see anything else in this thick snow or for very far. "Captain Rex, have your men survey the area. Place as many sensor beacons as you can before dark." _'Well, that'll solve the visibility issue.'_ I think with relief since we won't be blind in this storm.

"Right away, sir. Unload that gear! Let's move!" Rex goes ahead and begins giving out the order.

"General Kenobi." The dignitaries from Pantora step off the gunship.

"Chairman Cho, Senator Chuchi." My master greets back to the tall male pantoran Chairman Chi Cho and the younger female Senator Riyo Chuchi with their two bodyguards flanking them. "I suggest you wait here until we can secure the area." He warns them.

"I respect your judgment, General Kenobi, but I will go where I choose. This is sovereign Pantora territory." Chairman Cho tells him in a not so subtle tone and manner.

"I thought this planet was uninhabited, and therefore, it's not aligned." Master Skywalker points out.

"Our moon of Pantora is the only civilization in this system. I'm the one who asked the Senate to protect this planet. This wasteland belongs to us." Chairman Cho replies. While his attitude doesn't really come off as kind, obviously, I can see the reason for having an outpost here. This planet is a good staging ground and outpost for an early warning system in case Pantora were to come under attack as most would have to pass by this planet. Unfortunately that's not longer the case until we can figure out why our men have gone dark.

"With all due respect, Chairman, this is for the Senate to decide, not us." My master counters to him.

"Ahh but the Jedi report to the Senate, which is Senator Chuchi of Pantora." And the Chairman finds a loophole in this argument.

"Technically speaking, Master Jedi, the Chairman is correct. Since the planet is uninhabited, the moon of Pantora reserves the right to continue as its protectorate." Senator Chuchi finalizes the whole conversation.

"Point taken, Senator. Anakin, stay here with the Senator and the droids while we secure the base. Let's go Mat!" He raises his voice a little at the end over the rushing winds to make sure I hear him.

"Right behind you Master!" I call out and follow him to the base. Power hasn't been cut off so we're able to get the doors open with little effort. Maybe a little frozen from the cold but nothing we can't handle as they open. "Oh… wow…" What we find… is a lot more earie than I could have anticipated. Dozens of clone trooper helmets litter the area in front of us but the key difference is that their placed on some sort of spears all around. I bring my hand close to my lightsaber just in case its an ambush. Our men fan out in securing the area while my master, Rex and I walk up to the first set of helmets. My master pulls the helmet off one spear, which allows me to let out a breath of relief as I pull down my mouth cloth. "Okay, being honest, I'm very thankful their wasn't anything inside the helmets." I voice my relief.

"Yeah, but… I don't get it." Rex asks, referring to why the helmets are like this in the first place. I'm curious too.

"It must be Separatists." Cho walks up from behind, immediately swinging allegations as to the culprit but that seems like a far cry from their normal routine.

"I am not sure." My master isn't convinced either on who did it.

"We should head to the observation level. Maybe some of the computers can tell us what happened." I propose.

"Good call my padawan. Rex, let's go." My master agrees and calls on the captain, who in turn recalls his troops and we head to the turbolifts up. It isn't long until we make it to the top and while its not a similar scene to the entrance, we still don't find any survivors or any clear indications.

"Do you think the Separatists are building a forward base to attack Pantora?" Cho surmises the reason.

"I don't think we're dealing with Separatists. These computers haven't been touched." True to what my master says, all the computers haven't been tampered with whatsoever. No slicing, no tampering or anything that leads to accessing their databanks.

"I don't even see any droid bodies here or anywhere. There'd at least be something." I comment. Even if our men were taken by surprise, their would be now way the droids, even commando droids, would be able to take down all of our men without a single casualty. _'And then there are the helmets… and it doesn't look like any of these men were hit with blasters.'_ I lean down close to one of the clones and notice that his armor has been shattered. Spiderweb cracks go all over his chest piece. _'Blasters definitely don't do this. Something hard and powerful did this.'_

"Sir, our scouts have spotted a droid base on the other side of the ice ridge." Rex informs us, putting us a bit on edge.

"That's not good, but a lead we can use." My master says and keys in his communicator. "Anakin, go ahead and send everyone else but stay outside. I'll need your help to check something out." He cuts off the device and turns to me. "Mat, if the Separatists are here on this planet as well, I'd like for you to remain here and help protect the base while we go and investigate."

"Yes Master. I can do that. Hopefully that base can shed some light as to what happened."

"Me too." My master finishes saying and heads down the elevator to meet up with everyone else and scout out the Separatist base.

I sigh and turn around to be met with some clones staring at me. "Your orders Commander?" One of them asks.

I take a quick look around noting the state the place is in, the Pantoran representatives near the controls and what we might need. "Do what you can to get the systems back online. I don't want us here blind to whatever did this out there. I also want some men to gather up the bodys and transport them down to the main entrance. The least we can do now for your brothers that fell here is to take them back to Republic space."

"Yes sir." They salute and go to do their duties.

"Making getting the weapon systems and shields operational in this place a top priority before dealing with the dead." The Chairman tells the troopers as they pass him. "Theirs no point in dealing with the dead if we're killed by whatever the Separatists have planned." He finishes changing my orders and goes back to the console. The soldiers go back to doing their jobs but I'm not really happy with how he just dismissed the dead like that. I know there is some truth to his words, but we still have an early warning against possible attacks thanks to the sensors Rex and his men placed outside. These are the clones brothers after all.

"Chairman, what makes you so certain the Separatists are behind this attack?" Thankfully, the senator speaks to the chairman before anything else can happen. Her calm tone compared to the chairmans is a relief.

"Look around, Senator. Isn't this carnage proof enough?" He waves around us in emphasis as I walk closer to the senator.

"I know, but there are no dead droids here, no blast marks. The clones' injuries were not consistent with what—" She begins to list some very important points that do point to the separatists not having a hand in our soldiers deaths.

"Sooo, you're an expert on war now, are you, Senator?" He interrupts her.

"No, Chairman. No, I only—"

"She's may not be an expert, sir." I quickly interject, only because I don't like the look he's giving the senator. "But I am. I've read countless reports when dealing with the droids and fought in many combat scenarios and she's right. There is nothing here that points to an armed conflict that took place between two sides wielding blasters. Someone else—"

"Enough!" The Chairman cuts me off and gives a hard angry stare. "You are but a child. Barely fit to be a Jedi if what I know of your position." He speaks venomously to me, almost making me step back in more so surprise at the emotions I feel radiating off him rather than his insults at me. "I have seen more conflict than either of you two have been alive." He takes a moments pause to stare at both the Senator and I before narrowing his eyes. "Let me tell you something, the both of you." He begins to say and walk off to the side. "I have led the Pantoran people, our people, since before you two were born. I've seen 100 planets rise and fall through force of arms. If it's not the Separatists, it's a malevolent and aggressive enemy nonetheless. And I will not let whoever it is jeopardize the security of the people of Pantora." He speaks with such hard conviction laced with anger.

"But if the Jedi discover that the Separatists aren't behind this, then perhaps there is a peaceful resolution." The senator manages to speak of an alternative solution than just attacking, one that I can get behind in the end.

"Senator, I am willing to fight and die for my people. It's time to ask yourself if you are brave enough to do the same. As are you Jedi, for the lives of your men." Leaving us with that little bit of information, he and his bodyguards leave down the turbolift elevator to check on something else.

"… I'm not fond of that man." I say out loud. Senator Chuchi and I turn to each other now that we're not anywhere near him. "He speaks sooo… guh, his attitude just doesn't sit right with me." I tell her. I've met people before

"Please understand. He's a very passionate man when it comes to the sovereignty and well-being of Pantora. He comes off as… angry, but he means well."

"Hmm," I hum a little at her words. Even though he wasn't really nice to her, she still tries to defend him. No doubt because he's the ranking officer between the two but still. "You know ma'am, passion is all well and good but too much of it can lead one down the wrong and dangerous paths. As a Jedi, we have a code we follow by:

"There is no emotion, there is peace.  
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.  
There is no passion, there is serenity.  
There is no chaos, there is harmony.  
There is no death, there is the Force.

"Take what you will from his actions, but from what I can tell, a person who remains passionate to something for too long or too much, then they might be blind to certain paths ahead." I say. While Chairman Cho seems to want the best for Pantora, his version of what's best may not be true. "After all, he brushed aside your idea of a peaceful solution without a second thought." I finish saying and walk past her. Different ideals aside, I hope my masters are able to find some answers and hopefully solutions to this whole mess.

I really don't want to have to use the weapon systems here when they come online.

* * *

Hours pass and we're able to get the base back up and running as well as cleaned up as best we can. The bodies of our troops have been collected and placed near the door for ready transport off world when the time is right.

Now is not that time because the snow storms are starting to kick up something fierce. Communications are spotty and any harder and the gunships will be unable to go to certain places, much less take off.

Thankfully, my master and everyone else return to the base in one piece.

"Masters! So good to see you both." I greet the both of them with a small bow down in the garage when they return on their speeder bikes.

Rex walks up from behind me to greet them as well. "Glad you made it back, sir. It's getting nasty out there."

"You don't know the half of it." The comment from Master Skywalker leaves us a little confused as the others come in to talk to my masters as well.

"What did you find?" Chairman Cho asks.

"It seems we've stumbled onto an inhabited planet." My master explains the situation. Honestly, the idea of another faction being the attackers was always there but actually hearing that theirs new inhabitants on this planet is still a little surprising.

"Impossible. Our explorers have spent much time here over the long history of Pantora. No one lives here. They're trespassers." Cho immediately dissuades the idea harshly.

"With respect, Chairman Cho, these creatures, the Talz, aren't advanced enough to master space travel. I think they may have been here longer than Pantora." My master explains. _'Talz?'_ I think. Something about that species sounds a little familiar.

"Whoever they are, they belong to us. This whole system belongs to us." I really don't like the Chairmans attitude, or his view on the whole thing and the Talz.

"Your majesty, if there are life forms here, then the Senate must decide jurisdiction." Senator Chuchi still tries to make sense and better judgment of the situation.

"They are savages. Look at what they've done. They've slaughtered your troops." While Cho may be right on attacking our troops, it could be the Separatists fired first.

"They only want to be left alone. The droids attacked them, and I'm afraid our outpost got caught in the middle." _'Okay, I was right.'_ I think from my masters clarification of what happened.

"They must be subdued. They're dangerous. Captain Rex, prepare your troops for battle." Despite that, the chairman already wants to start a bloodbath with the new additions to the field.

"We promised their chief there would be no retaliation." Master Skywalker says.

"We've arranged a meeting between their high council and you and the Senator. They want peace." My master adds.

"We can't send troopers. They'll think we lied." Master Skywalker has a point. Showing up to the meeting armed to the teeth would not paint a peaceful picture.

"These creatures are little more than animals. You can't lie to an animal. They can't be trusted."

"But, your majesty—"

"No!" Cho cuts off Chuchi harshly, which makes me stand a little closer to her unconsciously less he gets really angry. "It is obvious these creatures are not covered by the convention of civilized systems. The Jedi Council has no say in the matter."

"If the Jedi are able to communicate with them, their status is in doubt." Chuchi continues to try to reason with the man.

"Do you stand against your chairman, Senator?" He darkly asks her.

"Of course not, your majesty." I let out a sigh at her backing down. Can't really blame her. Chairman Cho seems a bit unstable about all this, not to mention he just kind of pulled rank on her.

"If we're going to meet with Thi-Sen and his council at the arranged time, we'll have to leave now." My master tells us. Since we are now on a tight time crunch, everyone begins to gear up for the journey.

"The gunships can't take off in this storm. We don't have enough bikes for the entire platoon." Rex informs us of a small problem we now have.

"Have the rest of the men stand by here. No matter what the chairman thinks, we're not going to war." _'We can certainly hope so.'_ If we do fight, then we'll definitely be at a disadvantage without the full might of our soldiers, no gunships, and worse is we'd be on their home turf. I hope the chairman realizes those factors but somehow, I don't think he will. Nonetheless, we go ahead and begin embarking on our bikes. There are two different speeder bikes everyone will be using as we travel in this weather: The Biker Advanced Recon Commando speeder, or BARC Speeder for short, and the CK-6 Swoop, or Freeco Bike.

The BARC Speeder is a versatile high mobility speeder bike that comes equipped with two forward mounted blaster cannons and the ability to be interchangeable for a variety of situations. Interestingly enough, the bike was first intended to be used exclusively for ARC troopers but its such high effectiveness and somewhat cheap production costs allowed the vehicle to be mass produced and used by all clones in the Republic for when the situation calls for it.

The Freeco bike is a speeder similar to the BARC except it is much more adapt and suited for cold environments such as the one we are in. The Freeco has a bit of a thicker frame, dual laser cannons like the BARC, but its sealed pilot seat allowed for an insulated interior and for the rider to be heated in such cold temperatures, unlike the BARC's completely open and exposed seat which leaves them exposed to both the elements and the enemy.

Those of us with higher ranks take the Freeco's while the rest of our men take the BARC's. So the dignitaries, us Jedi and Rex are of course given the Freeco's. With everyone on their bikes, we head off to our destination.

* * *

We ride through the harsh storms for a bit, seeing nothing else besides our own forces.

Soon enough though, we manage to make it to the meeting place, which is taking place inside a building. I'm not sure if it's the separatist base or something much older but either way, its pretty run down from the weather hitting it. Everyone begins to disembark and gather around.

"Captain, put your men on that ice ridge. We will attack as soon as the savages arrive." Cho immediately orders for an ambush.

"There will be no attack, chairman." My master contradicts him.

"You will do as I command. This planet is under my jurisdiction." The Chairman angrily demands and states. _'God damn this guy is just hell bent on killing! So much anger.'_

"Nothing is under your control, Chairman. The Talz are already here."

"Their scouts have been following us for some time." My master and Skywalker burst his bubble.

"It seems Thi-sen doesn't trust you any more than you trust him." _'Probably good considering what he just proposed we do.'_

Just as my Master says that, we hear some creatures howling in the distance, right until several piles of snow around us erupt to reveal the Talz that have been waiting for us. _'Oh yeah, definitely their home turf.'_ Our men instantly put up their weapons but no one attack each other. Senator Chuchi isn't dissuaded by the surprise and walks past the Chairman with 3PO next to her. I catch up to her and walk with her to make sure everything is good. To be honest, I'd much rather protect her than the Chairman as bad as that sounds, especially if his actions forces us to fight. Any fighting goes down because of him, then it'll be his fault of any injury or death that comes from his actions.

"Rex, tell your men to stand down. Stay here and don't do anything to provoke them." Master Skywalker warns the captain.

"Yes, sir." While Rex tells his men, the rest of us, I, my masters, the Pantoran dignitaries and their bodyguards along with the protocol droid C-3PO head into place where the meeting is, all the while surrounded on all sides by the Talz but not outwardly aggressive.

I stick close to Chuchi as a precaution. "Should things turn ugly, stay down and stay behind me." I lean in and whisper to her. Even though the Talz don't understand us, I still do it.

"Are you really expecting things to turn out unfavorably for us?" She whisper asks back to me.

I don't answer instantly back to her, instead glancing to the chairman, seeing the look of disgust on his face before keeping my eyes forward again. "Just a little. Pays to be ready than not ready." I finish whispering to her. We can't speak anymore as we come upon a few more Talz at a dead end and see the middle one in a bit more garb than the others I've seen. Doesn't take much to see this must be the chieftain.

"Your Highness. We have returned, as promised." I'm right as my Master greets him. 3PO walks up and starts talking to the Talz leader in their language.

"These savages have no rights here." Chairman Cho voices his displeasure yet again while the chief speaks but we can't understand. That's why we have a translator with us.

"Chieftain Thi-Sen welcomes you to his home and hopes you come in peace. He wishes to be good neighbors, but he does not wish you to remain on his planet." 3PO translates what the chief said.

This doesn't sit well with Cho as he gets right in the droids face. "Listen, droid, translate everything I say and exactly as I say it." He harshly demands.

"Would you like me to in this matter?" She asks, stepping closer an in front of him. _'Yes please.'_

"Not on your life, Senator. There will be no diplomacy this time." He completely disregards her attempt to help. In an instant, he steps right up to the chieftan and points straight at him in a threatening manner. This puts the rest of the Talz on guard as they bare their weapons. I step in front of the senator just in case as the chairman angrily speaks. "Listen here, you savage, this world belongs to the moon of Pantora. And as the Supreme Chairman and exalted ruler of Pantora, you will not command me to leave this planet or do anything else!"

"Your Majesty, we can't." Chuchi tries to reason some more but he won't have it.

"Droid, tell him."

"Oh dear." Even 3PO realizes how bad this would turn out but he has to translate unfortunately.

"I recommend a less confrontational discussion. The Talz are easily provoked." My master explains to the chairman, but somehow I think he wants that to be the case for them. Afterall, they attack and their would be no doubt fighting would happen for both sides.

The chief speaks and gestures quite angrily. I may not be able to understand him but just the tone and his movement represents obvious anger.

"That didn't go over very well." Master Skywalker sees it too.

"Chairman, I promised the Talz that we would leave them in peace." My master explains.

"This is now an internal affair of Pantora." Chairman Cho states. Just as expected, once 3PO finishes translating, the chief isn't happy.

"The great Thi-Sen, son of suns, asks again that you leave or it will mean… war." 3PO warns us. Any sensible person would realize just the hopelessness of the situation and would do something to try to make things happen with less bloodshed.

"Then war it is." And just like that, the chairman just needlessly signed many peoples death warrants. Once 3PO translates, Thi-Sen and his men leave, as do the chairman and his guards. I can pretty much feel the sadness and disappointment my masters feel about the turn of events, even the senator isn't happy about it either. Can't say I'm happy about it either. "Troopers, mount up and follow me." Cho orders Rex and his men when we make it outside before going over to their speeders.

"What's up, general?" Rex asks.

"Not good Rex. Not good at all." I can't help but say when the rest of us walk up to the captain.

"You're gonna stay with the chairman until we can work things out. Protect him at all costs." Anakin tells the captain.

"Mount up! We're moving out!" Rex orders his men. While that happens, the rest of us turn to each other and talk.

"We have to do something." I say out loud.

Master Skywalker nods along with me before looking at Chuchi. "Senator, you know a preemptive strike is illegal. Isn't there anything you can do to stop him?"

"I'm afraid not. He has proclaimed this conflict an internal affair." She sadly tells us.

"You could petition the Jedi council for an intervention." My master proclaims a possible alternative.

"You mean, without his authorization?"

' _Screw his authorization.'_ "He just enacted war on another faction without consulting any other government officials, pretty much just ignoring you. Their has to be something someone else can do." I ask. Should someone of a higher power and standing enact or do things that would not be beneficial to their planet, people, or city and may outright cost lives, usually theirs some clause, rule or law that allows someone else of a possible lower power and standing to intervene for the betterment of everyone.

"There must be someone else on your moon who could approve it considering his actions." Master Skywalker nods his head towards where the chairman left

"The speaker of the assembly. He has the power." I smile at that there is in fact alternative to go around him.

"Let's get back to the base. The storm is letting up. Maybe we can get a transmission through." They begin to walk towards our bikes but instead of me going, I begin to think of something else I can do instead of just tagging along with them to simply talk to people.

"Master," I get his attention, "With your permission, I'd like to go with the Chairman and the clones to help try and keep as many people alive as I can."

"What?" Master Skywalker isn't too fond of the idea and I can see the worried look on the senator.

"Mat, are you sure? You know they are more than likely going to go into heavy combat and nothing like we've dealt with before." My master informs and warns me.

I nod firmly in understanding. "I do Master. Frankly I don't condone what the Chairman just did, however I don't like the idea of our own men paying the price for his arrogance. If I can go, at the very least I'd like to try and help save as many lives as possible. Both our side, and the Talz, if things can be smoothened out if you three are successful in trying to make peace." I explain as best I can. The Talz seem like an alright group of people and from what my master has said, they were not bloodthirsty to attack and are happy with the idea of peace, which means there is a possibility for keeping that peace that my masters promised.

Both of them look at each other for a second unsure before my master lets out a deep sigh. I'm afraid he's going to go ahead and decline my request but nods instead "Very well Mat. Go with Rex and the others. Do everything you can to protect them and the Chairman and to get out alive. Be cautious."

"Thank you Master. Let's hope this goes well for everyone." I tell him and I turn to leave.

"Mat." Master Skywalker stops me. "Watch your back out there. This planet is the Talz's home and they can be hiding in the snow to lay ambushes. You're going to be in the thick of it out there. You and the clones watch each other's backs."

"Don't worry Master Skywalker. I don't intend to be careless. I'll watch out." I nod to him and try to reassure him I'm all good to go on this.

Before I can get too far though, someone suddenly grabs my hand from the side, stopping me from continuing forward and making me turn to whoever did it. Senator Chuchi stares at me with a worried expression on her face. "Please… do be careful. I… I don't want see you… die, before we can find a peaceful solution."

I smile at the worried state she has for me. I pat her hand holding mine to reassure her. "Thank you, Senator. I'll be careful." She seems a little reluctant but she lets me go in the end. I take a few steps before turning my head back to her with the smile still present. "And I can assure you ma'am, I have no intention of dying anytime soon." Hopefully that will at least offer her some form of comfort while I'm gone. Guess we'll just have to see how things go as I embark on my Freeco speeder.

* * *

We pilot our speeders deep into some canyons following the Chairman. He hasn't really given us much to go on where exactly we are going but he has made it explicitly clear that if we were to see anything that resembles the Talz that we are to engage and kill them on sight. Of course, Rex and I voiced that that's not our job to do as we are meant to protect the Chairman only.

He did not like that. Eventually though, we spot some Talz far ahead of us sitting on some animals I'm not sure of exactly.

"Here they are. Fire when you're in range." Chairman Cho orders us to do. Before we could even do that if we wanted to, the Talz riders turn tail and run away from us, fast. Almost as fast as our speeders but we gain on them,

"Sir, with all due respect, we're only here to protect you." Rex reminds him.

"He's right Chairman! We are not here to fight the war you started." As do I.

"Quiet!" He yells at me through the comms, making me wince. "I will not be ordered around by a child! Jedi or no." He finishes saying, venom in his voice.

"Great." I mutter to myself in disdain. _'This is going to end very badly.'_ Besides my thoughts on the situation we are forced to continue following the chairman as we continue to follow the riders for a bit until something very bad happens.

"Ambush!" I hear Rex yell as several Talz appear out of snow mounds, like back at the meeting. They brandish big beefy melee weapons while more of their riders head straight for us this time.

"Watch out!" I shout as I get ready to dodge the rapidly approaching riders.

"It's a trap. Kill them!" Even without the chairmans orders, the clones have no choice to fire back as we all nearly collide with each other. I don't fire back as I almost completely focus on trying not to hit them while they try to hit me. Glancing out the window I watch as a few clones on their BARC speeders are killed almost immediately as they are bashed right off their rides. Combining the force of the bikes movement and the Talz immense strength, my men go flying through the air dead.

"Rex!" I yell as I watch his speeder get attacked by one of the animals and its rider. Thankfully, he ejects himself and takes out the hostile with his blasters while its vulnerable. With his ride out of commission, I pull up next to him as does everyone else.

"We're surrounded. Defensive formation!" He orders everyone to do. Having been stopped, everyone, including myself, proceed to quickly arrange all our bikes in a circle, giving us just a little bit of cover in the open frozen, snow covered plain.

Disembarking my own ride, I pull out one DC-17 blaster pistol and proceed to help the clones as best I can repelling the invaders. When the riders start to charge us I focus down on taking down the animals rather than the riders. I do want to limit the casualty's, but its getting hard to do that as I watch a clone next to me take a spear directly to his chest. I stare in horror as the piece of armor he's wearing on his chest does nothing to stop the hardened sharpened spear point from embedding into his chest and killing him outright. "By the force." I mutter silently to myself. I force myself down as a spear comes close to almost taking my head off. When I place my back to the speeder I'm using as cover, I see the chairman and his guards in the open in the middle of our circle shooting at any Talz they see.

"Chairman, get down!" One of the Pantoran bodyguards advises his leader to do. Unfortunately this leaves him open as a Talz warrior comes out of nowhere from the side and kills the guard almost instantly, throwing the body on the chairman from the force of the hit before it gets killed by the second guard.

"Damnit!" I grunt and roll forward before I grab the guards fallen carbine and returning fire as much as I can. Now, trying to limit lives lost is out of the question anymore so the best thing I need to do is limit my own soldiers lives lost, and in turn myself. Right now I'm shooting at Talz that are closest but I'm not even sure if my shots are fatal or not. I'm too busy trying to keep an eye out for any spears from hitting me. We are in killing field as the Talz throw spear after spear at us and the clones armor does nothing to stop the sharp projectiles from killing them almost outright. Spears are stabbed into the ground all around us and it feels like theirs just no end to them.

"We've got to hold out!" Rex calls out and we all try but they push us in mass. Not long after several of the Talz's bodies crash into a section of our circular bike wall we created, destroying some of our cover and rides.

"Captain! Call it!" I shout to him. He nods at me before signaling his men.

"Fall back! First squad, cover the retreat!" I can get behind Rex's order as I try to suppress the enemy to give what men we have left time to scrounge up any usable bikes.

"Retreat? We can't retreat from these animals." Chairman Cho makes the ludicrous statement despite the amount of men we lost, how close he came to dying and just the amount of pressure the Talz are putting on us.

"Chairman are you crazy?!" I loudly ask the man at the rapidly deteriorating situation as I move closer to him while trying to shoot. How bad things are is accentuated even more as a spear embeds itself right into his final bodyguard neck. "Son of a—!" I grunt at the brutal mangled kill just in front of me. I shake my head and focus on the chairman. "We are getting overrun and we'll die if we stay here! Orders are for you to live and we can't do that if you stay here like a—" I can't finish speaking my statement as my senses kick in, the same ones that let me know from a blaster bolt heading right for me. Upon instinct, I reach down with my right hand and grab my lightsaber before igniting it and bringing it in front of me. "Aaaaahhh!" I yell loudly in pain as my lightsaber cuts through the spear that was heading right for me, but unfortunately I only cut the shaft off, allowing the spear point to continue with less force but still embeds itself into my shoulder. I drop to the ground and grab my left shoulder from the sudden spike in pain.

"Fool." Even writhing in the ground, I hear the Chairman say and resume shooting at the Talz but he stops as he sees every one of our men begin to embark their speeders. "Get back here men! I am ordering you to stay and fight! Not run like cowards!" He doesn't notice the Talz running up from behind him about to cave his head off until Rex speeds on in, taking it out and stopping next to us.

"We can't stay sir! We are pulling out now!" Rex yells at him. I smile at his forcefulness at the chairman but that turns to a frown as I watch the Chairman take his GL-77 blaster pistol and point it right at Rex's head.

"Disobey my orders captain and run like a coward, and I'll execute you for treason and desertion! Now get back to—"

"Hrah!"

*SMACK*

Having enough of everything, I get up and take my carbine before I deliver a hit straight to the back of his head. He crumples into a heap in an instant, unconscious. Rex looks down at the body before back up at me, rifle in hand but my free hand gripping the wound on my shoulder. "That… felt… good."

"Thank you Commander." He thanks me and gets off to grab the chairman. I strap the carbine onto Rex's speeder and grab the blaster the chairman dropped. The GL-77, Pantoran made and a fast firing weapon with good stopping power. Can't really get into much details once Rex places the chairman on the front of the speeder while I get on behind Rex.

"I'm good. Let's go." I pat Rex's shoulder, signaling him to go. He nods and boosts us forward hard along with the rest of our men. The BARC speeder we are on isn't really meant for two people riding so I have to hold on tight so I don't fall off. A little difficult with my weak left arm and the spear point still in me but I can't take it out now for fear of bleeding out if it hit something vital, which while it hurts, doesn't feel like it did but I'm not going to take any chances. While we are able to get away from the group attacking us at the circle defense we had temporarily made, we're not in the clear yet as I spot several Talz riders above us up ahead on a small cliff. "Eyes up!" I shout to Rex, making sure he notices them. He sees them just in time as them come down from the nearby cliff ahead of us.

"Here they come!" He shouts when they attack. I have to hold tighter as he forces us to the side in different angles in order to avoid the oncoming swipes at us. I do what I can to try to shoot any of the Talz but its hard when we're dodging. It doesn't bode well for our men either as a few are killed instantly with a single hit, throwing them off their bikes, even sending one of the bikes spinning through the air and crashing into one of the cliff walls. I fire as best I can at as many as I can, taking down a couple of them by the animals their riding before their able to kill anymore of our men as we pass out canyon in open snowy land.

No more ambushes seem to be ahead us as the land is smooth and theirs no more riders in front of us heading towards us. Our highly advanced speeders are able to outpace the Talz and their animal mounts so its seems the only thing we need to do is put as much space between us and them.

Unforunately, the ice bridge ahead of us, the only path we can possibly take in our perilous situation, collapses along with a couple of our men, trapping us between a fall to our deaths and the oncoming hoard of Talz. Rex sees it and stops us with a slide just before we go over the edge. Looking down the edge shows we are not in an favorable position whatsoever. Nearly a hundred of them come charging at us while we are barely at over half a dozen men. Rex steps off our ride as the rest of our soldiers stop next to us. In true commanding fashion, Rex silently orders his mean to cover which directions while he helps me and the unconscious chairman. "Easy sir." He helps me off the bike and places me behind the bike. "Stay here, commander." He orders me and hands me a DC-15s blaster carbine. "Use the bike as leverage." He informs me and places the unconscious chairman down as well before he gets ready to fight as spears begin to land near us. With my left arm weak, the only way I can use the carbine is by going behind the bike and laying it on the end of the speeder to hold it up while using my right hand to fire it. I holster the pistol on me before getting ready to shoot.

We don't have to wait long as everyone opens fire on the long line of enemies that come straight towards us without relent. Carefully, everyone places their shots as best they can on the closest riders, as do I but there are so many of them. What indeed feels like a hundred of them are completely heading straight for our position. Being outnumbered is verily and understatement as our own side is reduced to barely half a dozen clones, with the chairman just barely waking up from the hit I gave him and my injured self. My heart begins to beat faster as I don't see any way from my position to escape this mess, and certain death.

That's what I'm feeling at first but relief floods me as our backup finally arrives in the form of several gunships flying overhead. This stops the Talz advance on us thankfully so we aren't being run down anymore. The weight on my shoulders of our situation is lifted somewhat as I spot Senator Chuchi and my masters disembark the nearest gunship along with a few squads of clones from all the gunships.

"Good to see you, sir." I manage t hear Rex greet them.

"You okay, Rex?" Master Skywalker asks.

"Ehh, it's just a scratch."

"What's going on?"

"We're in quite a mess, sir. 9 dead, the rest wounded, including the Chairman and the Commander." Rex quickly gives them the run down of what happened and our current condition, which is not good.

"Mat." My master jogs up to me quickly once he spots me and notes my injured state.

"Master." I say in a tired but relieved tone at seeing him here along with Master Skywalker. The worried looks they have is something I never really wanted them to have for me but frankly I'm just happy I'm seeing them right now. My hand holding the carbine falls to the ground as I stare at the two with a smile. "Sooo good to see you."

"Medic over here!" Master Skywalks calls out, waving over a clone medic to me. A medic quickly steps up to me and goes about checking my wound site, even laying me against the bike.

"Hold still sir. I need to remove this." The clone medic warns me, to which I nod in understanding. I have to grit my teeth as he pulls out the spear point from the pain flare up, as well as the cold winding nipping at the exposed wound but other than that nothing feels out of place.

"How bad is it?" My master asks, leaning in close.

"Not too bad. The spear didn't penetrate too deep and it didn't hit bone or anything vital. He'll make a full recovery so long as nothing makes it worse." He quickly informs us and then goes about disinfecting and treating the wound.

"That's a relief." I breathe out and my master nods in agreement. While the medic gets to work, I notice the senator walking over to a barely conscious chairman Cho.

"Chairman, can you hear me?" She asks him.

"Senator, good. Thank you for bringing reinforcements." He breathes out in utter relief, although for the wrong reasons from what I can tell. "These savages and their brutality… I hereby order you to destroy the Talz by any means necessary!" Even with a splitting headache, he's still angry about all of this as he grabs Chuchi's shoulder. Unless something can be done, this will not end well.

"I'm afraid I cannot do that, Chairman." I can't help but smile at her words as she pushes his hand away and stands up. "The Pantoran assembly has called you out of order. I am to negotiate peace." I felt relief before when backup, now I am completely relieved hearing that Chuchi is now giving the orders and not Cho.

"What?! No… Impossible! Peace? Never! I… have bled and sacrificed for our people!" He grabs his head in pain, no doubt from the hit I gave him earlier, cutting his rant short.

' _I have had enough of his crap!'_ I yell in my mind and stand up once the medic places a large bandage over my wound before I push past my master and the medic before limping towards him. "No, you haven't." I say looking down at him. He begins to say something but I stop him. "It was not you that bled for your people, it was us! Our clones died to protect your sorry hide because it was our order to. Your own men died and what do you have? Just a splitting headache and the only reason why your alive here breathing because 'I' was the one that had to force you before you could execute Rex for retreating a hopeless situation!" Out of the corner of my eyes, I see the looks of surprise on my masters and the senator at this news but I am still focused and angry at the man in front of me. "You claimed all this was an internal matter for Pantora but it was OUR men you led to their deaths! Gra!" I grunt as the anger and yelling agitates the wound. I step away and lean against another bike to keep from falling before sitting down next to it. The medic comes back and quickly checks me again just to make sure I didn't mess it up anymore.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot my master look all around us for a second before looking at Chuchi. "Senator, now is the time."

She looks away from Cho towards my master, a small look of hesitance on her face but it slowly morphs into one of determination and readiness. Much to my surprise though, she walks closer to me an crouches next to me. "Can you walk?" She asks me. I look at her in confusion before glancing to my master, who is also confused.

"I can." Even with my injury, I can move well enough.

"Then… I'm sorry to ask this, but I must ask that you come with me." She asks of me. To be quite honest I'm a little confused as to why she would need for this, but if she's to establish peace with the Talz…

"Alright." With a small grunt, I manage to stand on my feet before reaching down and grabbing my carbine. "Let's go Senator."

She gives me a relieved smile and grabs a nearby spear. "Protocol droid, come with me." She orders 3PO.

"Mat, will you be okay?" My master asks me. Since I'm injured, I understand why.

"I will Master. She wants peace, not war, so chances are things will be okay." I smile back at him, trying to give him some relief for my going as I step up next to Chuchi.

"3PO, get going."

"Yes, Master Ani." 3PO says to Master Skywalker and walks with us as we make our way to the chieftain, who has disembarked off his beast and is meeting us halfway between both armies.

"Can I ask why you need me?" Once we go far enough away from the others but not too close to the other, I ask Chuchi quietly, one hand grabbing my injured shoulder while the other just holds my carbine by the handle pointed down.

"You've fought them. Your wound is evident of that. Throwing your weapon down, knowing that you've faced them in combat, would show your willingness to not fight."

"Ohhh, okay." I nod at her explanation. It's a sound strategy and way to show we mean peace if I throw my weapon down.

Chuchi, 3PO and I stop some feet from the chieftain Thi-sen. Seeing as I have my weapon out, he holds his spear with two hands, ready to attack should I do something, which I won't. "Droid, translate for me."

"Yes, Mistress."

Chuchi goes ahead and takes the spear she grabbed before she stabs it into the ground. Following her example in a way, I drop my blaster carbine. The chief stares down at my thrown weapon and the spear before looking back at the both of us, taking one hand off the spear and letting it hang low to the ground with the other hand. "To die for one's people is a great sacrifice. To live for one's people, an even greater sacrifice. Many soldiers and warriors died today for each other's peoples. I choose to live for my people." She states firmly with conviction in her speech. "What do you choose?" Once she finishes speaking, 3PO translates what she said and asks the question.

At first, he only stares at us, glancing at the senator, then to me. I give him a slow nod, showing my own want to make peace despite me being injured. Once I do, he stars speaking. His gestures and actions seem angry, no doubt from everything that's happened. As he lifts his spear into the air, my hand moves to my lightsaber, ready to grab it and ignite it in an instant should he try to harm Senator Chuchi.

Instead of my fears coming true, he stabs the spear into the ground next to her spear, making them cross in an X. "He chooses to live as well." I let out the breath I was holding and relax when 3PO tells us what he said.

"We will leave Orto-Plutonia under the watchful eyes of the Talz from this day forth and recognize your sovereignty as a free and equal people." With one final gesture, both sides proceed to bow to each other, including the Talz on their beasts in the back. It's a nice feeling knowing that we just ended a war, no matter how long it was.

"NOO!"

"Chairman!" We turn around to see the chairman stalking up to us angrily, trying to be held back by some clones but he pushes them off. He is not happy whatsoever.

"This cannot stand! I will not let it stand! These are savages and don't deserve to be treated as equals!" Everyone is put on edge in an instant when he pushes right up between Chuchi and pulls out a DC-17 pistol and points it directly at Thi-sen.

"Oh my!" 3PO yelps surprised at the blaster being brandished.

"Chairman, please! The assembly has spoken. We are to have peace with them." Chuchi tries to dissuade him from making the biggest mistake of his possible soon to be short life by stepping in front between the two, trying to shield the Talz leader.

"Those misguided fools at the assembly don't know what it means to sacrifice for our people! I will not standby and let this happen!" He is getting incredibly unstable now and his aim hasn't waned in the least when the senator stepped in front of him.

"Chairman stop!" I move closer to him on his left and attempt to push the blaster down. "Its over! Its done now. Stop this before you—"

"Get off me!"

*Smack*

"Arhh!" I grunt loudly in pain as he pistol whips me in the side of my head, knocking me down. I hear some people call my name and footsteps running but they're distant and one close to me. I'm dazed for a second from the hit my vision clears up right quick, despite the headache. As I look up at him, my eyes widen as I see him aiming straight at Chuchi's head. Even she's looking at him very much scared.

"If it must be, then I'll fight these savages myself if I have ti AND I'LL KILL ANYONE THAT GETS IN MY WAY!"

I see his finger flex.

"NOOO!"

*SHHHUNK*

… A silence falls over everyone around, the only sounds being the whistling of the wind… and the hum of a lightsaber.

Chairman Cho stares in surprise, so does everyone else, including Master Kenobi, Skywalker and Rex as they make it to us but too late. Slowly, he looks down… right at me with the emitter of my lightsaber pressed right into his chest… on.

He stares at me in surprise, while I stare in horror at what just happened, before his face morphs into rage. "You… traitor." He breathes one final time with anger on his face right to mine, horror and surprise unchanging on my own. With one final bit of strength, he angles his blaster slowly right to my head, but… I can't move. _'Why can't I move?'_ My hands are shaking as they continue to grip the handle of my lightsaber in his chest.

I expect the end, the instant moment of my life ending as closer proximity blaster bolt enter my head… but it doesn't come.

His body jerks once as something runs into him from my left, jerking his movement and depleting what little strength he has left but remains standing. My eyes move to the side, allowing me to stare at Senator Chuchi right next to me, clutching a spear that's stabbed right into his chest, above and to the left of where my stab is. She's shaking… shaking a lot at the action she just committed.

Finally, another spear comes flying in from behind us, stabbing into the stop of his chest above my head. The force of the hit sends him falling back away from the both of us. Both Chuchi and I stare at the chairman with now two spears in him before turning around and seeing it was Thi-sen that threw the spear. He pulls his outstretched arm back from throwing before he gives the both of us a nod. We stare at him stunned before looking back to the front. For a second, we see the chairman just barely alive, breathing completely labored and on his last breaths of air.

Then… it stops. His chest ceases to rise and his head slumps to the side, eyes still wide open. Chairman Cho of Pantora is dead, by our hands… but I was the first to strike.

"Mat?" I hear my master call my name… but I'm still staring at the body of the person I just killed. My lightsaber finally turns off and my body slumps.

"Master… can we please go?" I ask, not taking my eyes off the first person I killed.

* * *

With the mission over, I find myself in my bunk room, just laying on my back and staring at the ceiling. While the ending of the mission was peaceful and done, I'm still not happy with how everything turned out during the whole mess. Especially our… men… and what I did.

As I remember the chairman, I reach to my side and pull out the blaster I took from him. It's a good blaster. He won't be needing it.

I continue to stare at both the weapon and ceiling, just… staring.

*Knock*Knock*Knock*

"Come in." I say to the person on the other side of the door as I holster my new blaster. Glancing to the side, I see my master stepping in. "Greetings Master." I sit up and swing my legs off the side along with my greeting.

"Hello Mat. I wanted to come and check on you to see how you were doing." He says in a calm tone as he stands in front of me.

"I'm okay. Just resting from the mission. I'm alright." I shrug in a nonchalant way.

"… Are you?" He's silent for a moment before asking me again.

From the tone in his voice, he wants the truth of how I feel, not dodging the truth of it all. "…" I stare at my master for a few silent seconds before I break and sigh loudly and deeply. My head slumps downwards as I speak. "… You know Master, the Chairman, when you left me with him and Senator Chuchi while you guys went to check out the Separatist base, he told the Senator if she was willing to make the sacrifice for her people… and if I was to do the same for my men…" I sit here continuously staring at the floor as I think on my next words. I look back up towards my master. "Master… I… killed him… but he… he almost shot…" I shake my head in disbelief. Just as we made peace, he almost completely ruined everything. I don't know how blinded he was to the alternatives, but its hard to say if I saw one too. Seeing him aim his blaster at Chuchi, a member of his group… I just… couldn't…

My master lets out a sigh and sits down next to me. "Sometimes… when the situations call for it, we may have to do things that don't seem right, or they contradict our original orders, in order to find a better solution. While losing the Chairman was unfortunate, it was his own actions that resulted in his death. We established peace with the Talz, but if he fired, then it would have been a massacre." I look down at the news, but my master places his hand on my shoulder, making me look back at him to see he doesn't have a look of disappointment or anything like that, simple… content. "Killing people at will is not the Jedi way… but we must keep the peace whenever we can. And that man seemed bent on breaking what you and the Senator had made with the Talz. I'm sorry you had to do that Mat, its something I was hoping you wouldn't have to do, especially not so soon, but it had to be done. It seems like it was inevitable given his… state of mind on the Talz. If it wasn't now, it was most likely going to be eventually that his actions would lead to his demise."

"…" I sit there quiet for a little bit, thinking on what I did and what my master said to me. Soon, I sigh and nod. "Thank you Master. That… your words… helped."

"I'm happy to help in anyway I can." He rubs my shoulder before standing up. "Should anything happen or you begin to feel distraught in anyway, do not hesitate to come to me for aid. No matter what, as your teacher, I will help however I can." We smile at each other at his words of help, of which I am grateful. "Are you going to be alright?" He asks one last time.

I breathe in through my nose deeply before letting it out through my mouth. "I think I will. Just… need to process everything."

He walks over to the door but just before he goes through it, he places his hand on the side wall and looks back at me. "Taking a life was always a possibility, given how this war is going. I just…" He looks down, a little sad before back up at me. "Like I said, I was hoping it wouldn't be so soon for you to be forced to do it, and not so young."

Despite his sad nature right now, and my feelings on it all, I manage a small smile to him. "Thank you Master. I appreciate what you said. Despite what I did, I am glad we were able to establish the peace. I won't dwell only on what happened with the Chairman."

He nods. "Very well. Get some rest. You deserve it after everything."

"Later Master." I give him a small wave as I continue to stare back up at the ceiling. I hear the sound of him leaving and the door closing, leaving me alone in silence, and eventually to my own thoughts. _'I killed someone. It was one thing with destroying droids left and right but to kill another living being… So much needless death happened because of him. He didn't need to die… but he forced it. If I hadn't and he went home, I feel like he would cause no end of problems and frustrations with the Talz. If I hadn't, more would have died, including…'_

*Knock*Knock*

' _More?'_ My master left a few minutes ago. Wonder who's there now. "Come in." I allow the person entry. To my surprise, Senator Chuchi is my visitor this time. "Senator Chuchi." I quickly sit up when she enters.

"Please! Don't stress yourself for me. This isn't a business visit." She quickly tells me, stopping me from standing up.

"Oh, okay then." I relax a bit at her slightly shy nature now. "So, what did you need then?" I ask calmly. While I was pretty shook up at the end about what happened, I almost completely forgot that the senator also must have been shook up by it as well, considering both her and Thi-sen saved my life. "Is everything alright?" I add.

She doesn't look at me directly, focusing more on the ground and being just a little shy. "To be honest, I'd be lying if I said I was alright."

"Hm hm hm." I lightly chuckle at her answer, considering it's the same feeling I have. I scoot over on my bed towards my pillow, offering a spot for her to sit. "Join the club." She's just a little surprised at my answer but smiles and takes a seat next to me nonetheless.

For a bit, we simply just sit here in silence without talking to each other until I decide to break the ice. "You know, I guess I should probably thank you, for saving me and all when… you know." I trail off a little.

Out of the corner of my eye I see just the smallest hint of a smirk on her lips. "It's me who should be thanking you. If you hadn't stepped in then…" Her mood immediately turns dour at the memory of what happened.

"Yeah…" Again, we delve back into silence again with each other. "I'm sorry for what I did. If their was another way I would have done it but… he was just so… angry." I let my body sulk a little at my outcome. "Being a Jedi, you kind of have a better idea of how people feel in that regard." I continue to sulk as I say. Even though I'm still new and don't have as much experience in the force as my master and the others have, just the amount that was radiating off the man was so… obvious. It was bad… really bad about it all.

"How is it?"

"… I'm sorry?" For a moment I'm confused as to her question.

"A jedi, is what I mean. I've mostly only heard of what Jedi are capable of and seeing one in action is something I'm not really accustomed to. Is it… okay for you to talk about it?"

"We don't actively go out of our way to show everyone how things go when it comes to training as a Jedi, but I see no harm in answering your questions senator." I tell her with a smile. I think I can get behind answering some questions for her, especially if it means getting our minds off other things.

"Then please, how is it Master Jedi?"

"Whoa whoa whoa." I lightly and jokingly ease my hands down at the high ranks she pretty much placed on me with a smile. "Master Jedi is way above my position. I'm just a Padawan, which is a pretty low rank all things considered. In fact," I get up off my bed and step forward before turning to her. "Padawan learner Matthew Morrow at your service ma'am." I formerly introduce myself with a bow to her. "Mat for short."

She smiles sincerely at the display and gets up to before returning the gesture. "Senator Riyo Chuchi. Pleased to make your acquaintance." We finish greeting each other before letting out small chuckles at each other and sitting back down.

She asks her questions, and I do what I can to answer. Simple as that.

* * *

 **Happy New Years everyone! Hope things have gone well for you all and I hope you like this chapter as well. Originally, things weren't going to dive off course as they did at the end there… but then after much thought and thinking as to how to progress my story and Mat's character development I found this to be a nice opportunity along with just a little bit of change to the original plot.**

 **Hope you all liked it. To be honest, with how arrogant and angry the Chairman was, felt kind of nice writing this. Yes yes some may argue that he was loyal and wanted what's best for Pantora, but in all honesty he took it way too far with the fighting and all the lives that were lost.**

 **Grimlock987:** It's a whole mess of things if I'm being honest. After the Arc troopers episode, I've decided to from now on to focus and follow a chronological list of episodes that's been made such as on Wikipedia, wookieepedia, and . Less of a headache to be honest. Not to mention the different episodes that are supposed to happen later or earlier and all that, for example the Holocron hesit by Cad Bane is supposed to be the first time the Jedi meet him, rather than Hostage Crisis where they got Ziro released. A simple search on a search engine is all you'd need in order to find a listing that I'll follow from here on out.

 **Ironknight3307:** Yes, I've seen the trailer. Was so happy when I saw it and very excited to see how things are going to go. It'll definitely help when I eventually get to that part of the story but man is it going to be good.

When it comes to Death Watch, the Duchess and Mandalore, oh yeah, Mat is going to have his moments and own inputs when it comes to those locations and people, especially with his Master.

Don't worry, he knows about the different lightsaber fighting styles and whatnot, just haven't really made them prevalent, sorry. Rest assured, he'll add more lightsaber forms, styles, armors, and equipment to his repertoire as time progresses, some that even have been forgotten.

 **Cf96:** Thanks. Appreciate the words.

 **This chapter was supposed to come out earlier like around Christmas time but I got sick a few days before Christmas and since then I have just been off and on with sickness every few days, so my writing ability was delayed by some. Thankfully I'm feeling a lot better now so things can pick up soon.**

 **Thank you all for your patience. Let's all hope this new year will be a heck of a lot better than the previous year that's for sure. Go ahead and fave, follow, review, whatever you want, but most of all everyone, have fun reading, have a great day and have a Happy New Year to all of you.**

 **P.S. I hope we get a air date soon on Season 7.**


	12. 11 Blue Shadow Virus

I'm starting to feel better, despite what happened. Taking a life like that was… jarring to say the least. But as my master had said I would have had to eventually. Considering who I had to kill and who he was planning to hurt, I can't say I'm too choked up about it. That's not really something I'm sure the masters would approve of in thinking but at the very least its what's helping me to better cope with it. He didn't deserve to die but he didn't make it easy in making sure we held back to keep him alive. Turning his blaster on one of his own just when we had peace was just the final straw that forced my hand.

"Mat? You okay?" I'm brought out of my thoughts from the question.

I turn to look at Ahsoka as we sit on the transport ship. "Yeah. Yeah I'm alright. Just got some stuff on my mind."

"Is it because of…?" She doesn't finish the sentence. Just leaves it hanging enough.

I nod a little. "A little."

"Well, I'm sorry I wasn't there to help you. If you ever need someone to talk to…"

"I know you'll be there Ahsoka." I turn and smile at her. "You're a good friend like that. I know you got my back, just as I have yours."

"I'm glad to hear that." She returns the smile.

"I am glad to see your doing better my padawan." I nod to my master. "Just remember to be mindful of how you are feeling. If you're not careful then they may overtake you." He warns me and I nod.

"I understand Master. I'm okay for now but… I'll make sure to me mindful later on, especially on this mission." I try to reassure him. The whole thing still weighs on me, but nearly as much. Now that I mentioned the mission, this gets me curious as I look to my master. "By the way Master, what's this mission we're on again? The info we got was kind of vague."

"That's because the info we got was limited at best." Master Skywalker cuts in.

"Indeed. All we surely know right now for sure is that their have been a number of droids spotted on Naboo and the people there are worried the Separatists are going to stage an attack or forward base here." My master answers, looking to his former padawan before turning to Ahsoka and I.

"Usually a few droids wouldn't warrant our intervention, but it seems they were able to get some additional information from the droids they destroyed and captured and found out that they are in fact doing something here."

"Something that involves a lab." My maser finishes grimly.

"A lab?" Ahsoka asks confused.

"That doesn't sound good." I comment as we both look at each other, sharing the same feeling of unease on what kind of lab this is going to be.

"It never is when it involves the Separatists." Master Skywalker comments.

"Ready to test out your new blaster?" Ahsoka asks cheekily once the original conversation ends, throwing me a smug look.

I return the look as I pull up my new blaster pistol. After having done what I did to the Chairman, using his GL-77 blaster doesn't feel right. So as a means to take my mind off it, I worked double time in repairing my mystery blaster pistol. Had to get some special cleaning solutions, tools and oils in order to clean off the who knows how long algae, seaweed and grim that's been caked onto it, and I had to order some more parts, mostly internal stuff, to get it back in working order. The frame itself wasn't degraded or anything so I'm confident I can fire it without too much trouble on my end. All in all, it looks like an awesome blaster but I haven't been able to use it yet. I had just finished it when we got the call to come to Naboo. I don't have the specs on what exactly this weapon is capable of but I know I have plenty of shots to use before I have to reload. That was one part I especially needed to fix up. "You know it. I haven't had time to test it out so when we got this call to go out, figured it'd be the best time out of any to take it."

"Just be mindful of it Mat." My master chimes in. "Bringing an untested weapon out into the field can spell danger so be careful." He warns me.

"No worries Master. I'll be mindful." I do what I can to reassure him and I do a quick examination of my blaster again to be thorough.

"… Mat, can I see your blaster for a second?" My master asks. I look at him confused, to see him staring at my weapon specifically.

"Oh, uhh, okay." I stutter a little before handing it to him, being mindful of where the trigger is and so we don't accidentally discharge it. He takes the weapon carefully and stares at it intently. He turns it around and examines it from different angles a couple times before ultimately stopping and staring at it for a long period. I end up staring at Ahsoka, who looks confused as I do, and then to Master Skywalker, who shrugs at me. When I turn back to my master he's still staring at the weapon. "Uhhh, Master?"

"Hm?" He snaps out of it and looks back at me to my concerned face.

"You okay?"

"Oh, yes. I'm fine. Sorry about that." He hands the weapon back to me with a smile. "I was just remembering something. That's a good blaster. Make sure to take care of it." He answers the last part when he turns away from me. I continue to stare at him confusion before quickly glancing to the others but when I get shrugs, I decide to drop it. I do however stare back at my blaster again. Seeing my master stare at it like that, I remember that I'm still a little confused on just how Master Windu knew just what type of company I needed to contact in order to get the parts I needed, but as long as I got the parts I needed and its working I'm good overall.

After we finish talking I feel the ship begin to ease up and land. "We're here everyone." The pilot informs us.

"Thanks pilot." Master Skywalker replies and lets go of the rail, followed by the rest of us as the doors open. "Let's go everyone and see what all this is about." Ahsoka and I follow our masters as we disembark the ship and are met by a guard, C-3PO and a pink gungan.

"General Kenobi, Anakin, we're so glad—"

"Where's Senator Amidala?" Master Skywalker immediately interrupts the guard and asks hastily.

"She went to look for the lab." He answers.

"And you let her go?" Master Skywalker does not like the answer.

"Senator Padmé can be very hard to stop once she has made up her mind." 3PO chimes in.

"Good point. I know what you mean."

"This is Peppi Bow." The guard motions to the pink gungan as she steps forward. "She was the last person to see them. Padmé sent her here to safety."

"Theysa looking for the sick maker." Peppi informs us.

"'They'?" My master repeats to his confusion. So far we were led to believe that the senator was alone when she left but apparently not.

"Representative Binks was with her." I don't know this Binks person but from the looks the masters sport I don't think its all that good when the guard mentions him. Master Skywalker sighs before turning to Ahsoka.

"Go with the Gungan. See if you can find them." He orders her.

"Better go with her Mat and back them up." My master sends me off too with them.

"Yes Master."

"You've got it, Master." Ahsoka and I reply to our masters and follow Peppi to where we need to go.

* * *

Because of the rough, swampy and rocky terrain we are going to, we can't exactly use ships or speeder bikes in order to get there, nor did we agree that if we go by ship, we may get ambushed if the enemy sees us coming if we use the vehicles.

That's why we decided to use one of Peppi's animals as our transport. She's has a herd of animals known as Shaak, big bulbous beasts that are raised and eaten for their meats but of course now, Peppi, Ahsoka and I are riding one such beast towards the coordinates provided by Senator Padme.

Peppi rides on the front while Ahsoka rides behind her and I behind her. I have to admit, I think both Ahsoka and I have to keep ourselves from blushing considering I mostly have to hold onto her in order to stay on. At least I have to keep from blushing, not sure about her though. Still we don't have to move too long as we eventually come upon a ship that landed in the swampy area.

"These the ship belonging to them." Peppi informs us, talking about Senator Padme and Representative Binks.

"Yeah that's not inconspicuous at all." I mutter. Flying a ship like that here is a pretty big beacon to the enemy if they want to keep this area a secret.

"So where are they? Their tracks end here." Ahsoka asks as we come to a stop and disembark our ride. We look and see that the tracks do indeed stop cold where we are. No other tracks or anything seems to indicate that they've been tampered with so its like they just stopped.

All of a sudden, Peppi begins to gain some height on us. A small telescopic scope seems to poke itself out from the ground and begins scanning around us "Watch it!" I quietly yell and pull Ahsoka behind the camera. Ahsoka and I immediately put ourselves behind the lens to avoid being seen and we step behind it while Peppi is doing everything she can to keep her balance on the tiny object.

"Peppi, it's a scope. Don't let them see you." Ahsoka warns her. When the right moment comes, I quickly grab Peppi's flailing arm and pull her down out of the view from the scope and behind a fallen tree log. As we hunker down, Ahsoka jumps and lands next to us. After a second we look back over at the scope, being mindful to not get spotted as it turns. Interestingly enough it seems to focus on Peppi's beast for a bit before eventually retreating.

I let out a sigh and sit back down against the tree. "Good. It looks like the scope just assumed whoever tripped the sensors was an animal." I comment in relief. The security cameras just may have assumed that whoever tripped the sensors was just a wandering wild animal and not two Jedi's and a gungan.

"At least we found the lab. I'm calling the others." Ahsoka says and activates her commlink. "Master, are you there?"

"Did you find her?" Master Skywalker asks, talking about the senator.

"Negative on that Master Skywalker." I tell him. "We found their ship but no sign of them personally."

"Although we did find the lab. We're pretty sure she's inside it. The whole area is wired with pressure sensors and camera's. There's no way to get in without being detected. But I think we can break in—"

"Do not attempt to get inside." My master suddenly chimes in and tells us. "I need you to detonate a bunker bomb at the south end of the facility. It should cause a nice distraction and seal off the bomb area while we come in through the hatches."

With the plan given to us, Ahsoka looks at me where I shrug in agreement. "Sounds good to me."

She nods. "You can count on us."

"Rex and his men will be right behind you. They'll have your back you two." Master Skywalker tells us.

"Appreciate Master Skywalker. We'll see you when the plan goes down."

"Be careful."

"We will."

* * *

After a bit of time passes, for the night to crawl around and for our reinforcements as well as our Masters strike team to get into position, Ahsoka and I go ahead and get started on getting ready to initiate the attack. We use Peppi's animal to trick the sensors into revealing themselves, where they spot the animal then tuck back into the ground without seeing us. While we were waiting, Peppi went ahead and informed us of the virus in the water that killed a bunch of her animals and nearly killed her as well, no doubt a result of whatever this 'sick master' whipped up to cause damage, chaos and innumerable casualties.

All the more reason to get in this lab and take down what they are making and the person who's making it. Once Peppi herds her animal back to us and out of harms way, we go ahead and get ready to blow up the hatch. Using the force, Ahsoka begins to levitate a thermal detonator over to the hatch where we are supposed to detonate for the distraction. She floats it over slowly to the hatch, low to the ground and being mindful about anymore cameras. Soon though a camera pops up and begins turning towards the detonator.

With a swipe of my hand, I too use the force and pull a large bushy shrub in front of the detonator before the camera spots it. The both of us concentrate hard in keeping the force placed on our objects until the camera descends back into its place.

We both let out breaths of relief at the close call. "Thanks." Ahsoka thanks me. I nod back to her and let the shrub go. She begins moving the detonator again and as she does I make sure to keep myself ready to help make sure the detonator is out of sight from the security. Thankfully, we don't have to do anything like that again because with slow ease, she manages to transport the detonator right to the hatch.

And then about a half dozen cameras spring up and look at it.

"Now!"

We take cover just as she drops the grenade. A powerful explosion happens, tearing through the entrance of the lab and when the initial blast sound dies down, we hear the telltale sounds of an alarm going off in the secret facility. Once the explosion happens, that's the signal for our backup to fly overhead towards us. We watch as several of our LAAT gunships fly overhead towards the other entrance of the facility where our Masters are supposed to enter the facility. "That did it. C'mon we need to get moving." I tell Ahsoka, who nods in agreement.

"Meesa come too?" Peppi suddenly asks, prompting us to stop and turn to her, to make sure she doesn't follow us into a firefight when she's not trained to be in one.

"No. Stay here and make sure no one escapes." Ahsoka quickly and firmly tells her what she should do. For a second I see the annoyed frustrated look she has at being told to stay back and not help directly.

"We are going to go in and take anyone we can in that lab but we can't take any chances of them escaping and possibly releasing whatever they are cooking in that place. Stay out here keep an eye out for anyone coming out and take them down. Anyone who escapes, droid or even the sick maker, could continue to do harm." I do what I can to make it so her job is indeed important and not just so she doesn't get in our way. We kind of don't want her to get in our way but we really don't need to take any chances of anyone escaping, droid or not.

Realizing just how important it is for us to not let anyone escape, she nods and holds her staff firmly. "Okidee." She agrees and nods. With our new friend staying, Ahsoka and I run forward and jump down the hole we blew open right behind Rex and his men who repel in.

In an instant we are beset by blaster fire from all around. We both ignite our lightsabers and begin deflecting blaster bolts away from us and our men. She stays at the front of our group while I move behind slightly to cover our back.

I use the Soresu lightsaber form to help with deflecting the blaster bolts back at the enemy droids firing at us. My master is particularly proficient with this type of lightsaber form and he's made it sure that I knew how to best use it. I've had to try to modify the form itself for my own style to compensate for one-handed movements since I'd be using my blaster in the other hand.

"Forward! Come on!" Rex calls out to his men as they push forward. As they move forward I do what I can to bring up the rear against the droids. Soon the droids behind us are taken down and all that are left are the ones in front. However its not going to be easy as I hear the familiar yet horrifying rolling sounds of a type of droid. When I look towards the front, my fears are true as the droidekas roll down the hallway towards us.

"Destroyers!" I shout as the droids stop and get ready to fire so I proceed to move to the front right next to Ahsoka. We both go side by side and do what we can to deflect the blaster shots away from our men as they unless a flurry on us. Unfortunately because of the droids shields, our deflected shots and our men's blaster shots can't hit the droids themselves are just absorbed by the shields. I don't even bother pulling out my blaster just so the shots will get soaked up by the shields. "Their too strong!" I yell as I'm barely able to keep up with the shots.

"Fall back!" Ahsoka and I put ourselves in front of the clones and deflect the blaster shots heading for us, providing cover for our men as we try to fall back away from the destroyers. They don't let up as they continue to rain blaster bolts on us relentlessly.

"Theirs too many of them!" Rex calls out as another one of our clones is taken down.

"We can't hold them!" Ahsoka calls out our attempts at deflecting become more and more difficult.

"We need back now!" I yell into the comm.

Our backup finally arrives as an explosion takes place in front of us, the hallway tunnel collapsing and kicking up a massive amount of dirt and dust in the air. Ahsoka and I grunt as we bring our hands up to cover ourselves from the dust. Once the sound of rubble dies down, we look back to where the droids were.

"Need some help?" Our help happens to come in the form of my master as he stands atop the rubble that crushed the droids that were attacking us. Their shields may have been able to block blasters but its not so good against hard materials like rocks.

"Master… thank the force." I can't help but sigh in relief at his entrance.

"So good to see you, Master Kenobi." Ahsoka is also relieved to see him as well. We turn off our lightsabers and head up to him as he steps down from the rubble.

"The rest of the facility has been locked down by our troops and I decided to come give you all a hand." He explains, then he turns around and looks at the droids crushed under the rubble. "It looks like I got here just in time."

"Well, when your dealing with Destroyer droids, any help would be appreciated."

"Definitely." Ahsoka says relieved and in agreement with me.

"Glad I could help. C'mon we should get going and clear out the rest of the facility." He begins walking down the hallway.

"Right behind you Master! Rex, lets move out!" I call out and follow my master.

"You heard him men! Let's go!" Rex calls out to the rest of our men and follows after us Jedi.

"How's the mission going so far Master Kenobi?" Ahsoka asks as we run as fast as we can down the hallway.

"Things are going well. The lab is secure, and hopefully Anakin has reached Padmé by now." He quickly informs us without stopping. As soon as we turn a corner though more droids are waiting and immediately open fire on us. "I'll get the bombs!" My master calls out and begins to head in the opposite direction of the droids.

"We'll keep the droids occupied!" Ahsoka shouts to him as we both go back to deflecting blaster bolts. While Rex's most of his men stay with us to help take down the droids, my master takes Rex and the orange armor painted clones specialized in defusing bombs with him to find the bombs and render them inert and harmless.

"Never gets dull does it Ahsoka?" I can't help but ask her as we deflect the blaster bolts yet again.

"Never does!" She replies with a grin.

"Forward! Take them down!" I rally our men and push forward with Ahsoka. The droids don't have anymore droidekas attacking us so this time we are able to move closer without risk of getting shot down by a massive flurry of blaster bolts, as well as able to damage these droids as well. Ahsoka is more acrobatic than I am and it shows as she ducks low to the ground and rushes forward under the blaster fire. In an instant she slices a couple B1 droids in half before jumping off the wall and slashing a Super battle droid in half from above. Before some more droids can shoot at her I deflect several shots back at them, dropping a few droids before I rush forward, deflecting shots all the while. This time I move past Ahsoka and begin cutting down the droids. When I get close enough I cut down two B1's in one swipe and cut off the shooting arm of a B2. Without its blaster, it brings its other arm up and tries to cave in my skull. I duck under the swipe and stab the Super from below right into its chest. I stay there for a second as the droids behind it perforate the body to get to me before I roll along the body to the left, tearing my lightsaber out the side and following up with a wide sweeping slash, felling the last of the droids we are currently dealing with. "That all of them?" I ask out loud, holding my lightsaber up and close, ready to fight some more just in case.

"For now." Ahsoka grimly states as she walks up to me, turning off her lightsaber. I do the same. "Let's move. We should go find our Master and help them."

"Right behind you." I agree with her and we start running. As we go deeper into the base we are contacted by Master Skywalker.

"Ahsoka, Mat, we've got another situation. Send all the clones to search the facility. We've got a mis—"

"Wait…" I mutter in confusion as we come to a corner.

"Master?" Ahsoka mutters in confusion as well at the fact we just came upon her master who was just talking to us over the comm.

"We've got a missing bomb and a trigger happy mad doctor on the loose." He quickly informs us of the situation in person. _'A missing bomb? Okay, that's pretty bad.'_

"Missing bomb? I saw Dr. Vindi give a little droid a bomb." The senator, now safe, tells us.

Hearing this, Master Skywalker nods and turns to us. "Okay, Mat come with me. The rest of you split up and find that droid."

"Yes Master Skywalker." I nod.

"You heard him. Let's move!" Ahsoka tells everyone and takes off with the Padme and the clones down a different hallway while I follow Master Skywalker.

"Master Skywalker, do you have any idea where the doctor is?" I ask him as we run through the hallways.

"Not exactly! But I doubt he's going to leave on foot or by land. He wants to leave now and quickly."

"And the best way to do that is by air." I surmise by what he's thinking.

"Exactly. And from the layout of this place that your Master and I saw, theirs a large open room we'll be coming to that I'm betting is a hanger for him to fly out of here." He informs as we come upon a straight hallway. True to what he says, we spot a ship on a platform and the doctor himself with a guard of droids there protecting him. "Bingo." He smiles as we come up to the hanger.

"Jedi!" One of the droids call out, alerting them all to our presence as we ready our weapons.

"Leaving so soon, doctor?" Master Skywalker asks Dr. Vindi, who is wearing an environment suit, no doubt to protect him from the virus should it escape.

"You are running out of time. Catch!" Vindi really teases us hard when he pulls out a vial from his little suitcase and tosses it into the air. In an instant Master Skywalker jumps to catch the vial before it breaks and its content is released. At the same time, Vindi takes the distraction and begins ascending on the platform.

"Hold it!" I yell and go to intercept him but his droids open fire on me as he sneers a creepy smile. I'm forced to stop and block the shots with my lightsaber.

"Goodbye Jedi!" Vindi says loudly in playful tone as he ascends the platform.

"Obi-Wan, Dr. Vindi's escaping! He's at the landing platform." Master Skywalker calls my master and informs him of what's going on. With the Doctor in possession of the virus and his droids protecting him, we can't move in close. The clones begin shooting at the enemy but all they manage to do is take down a couple droids before they are stopped by Master Skywalker. "Don't shoot. If he drops one of those vials, we're finished." He pushes one of the clones blasters down. "Mat, with me." He calls to me and uses the force to jump up onto the platform. I follow him and land next to him. "You're under arrest, Dr. Vindi." The doctor himself sneers at us for getting to him just as the platform closes and we are up and on the surface. His sneer though seems to fade away to a smile as he slowly lowers his virus container with his free hand held up in surrender. Before we can stop him he grabs two vials from it and holds them up. Master Skywalker and I freeze up at the deadly vials he holds in his hands threateningly. He lets out a loud laugh at his apparent easy victory over us.

Vindi attempts to break one of the vials but out of left field Peppi tackles him to the ground. The both of us bolt as the vials go flying through the air. Master Skywalker dives low to the ground to grab one vial while I jump and run up Vindi's ship to prevent it from breaking on top of it. I throw myself onto the roof of the ship and catch the vial just in time before it breaks. I let out a sigh of relief at the close call.

"Mat!"

"I got it!" I call out at the sound of Master Skywalker's voice. I also roll to the edge and hold up the vial to show its undamaged state. At the same time I spot Peppi as she manages to subdue the doctor quite painfully. She smacks him a couple times with her staff before hitting him with a nasty shock from it. Master Skywalker and I walk up to the two of them where I hand the vial to the master, seeing that we now have the doctor ready to be arrested.

The ominous beeping we hear kind of makes us worried though, especially with the doctors loud laughing. "Yeeeess! The bomb's going off, and we're all going to die! Yeah, die!" He boasts as the beeping gets louder and louder until…

*…*

Silence. "Oops. What happened?" Vindi asks confused. Master Skywalker, Peppi and I look around confused at the lack of noise and how theirs no longer any explosions happening.

I pull up my comm. "Uhhh Ahsoka? Senator? Master? What's going on?" I ask everyone for clarification.

"I'm here, Mat." Ahsoka replies. "You can relax everyone. The missing bomb has been deactivated. Were you and my aster able to find Vindi?" She asks us as well.

"Deactivated as well." My master tells her. "Have you seen Padmé?" He asks concerned for the Senator.

"She's right next to me." She answers. "I'm okay too. Thanks for asking." I chuckle a little at her tone as Master Skywalker begins to talk to the senator.

"I'm glad your okay Ahsoka. Up here we had to deal with a crazy doctor throwing bottles of deadly virus all over the place."

"That sounds like fun." She says in a sarcastic tone.

"You'd think it would but it was surprisingly heart stopping." I reply in my own sarcastic tone. "Thankfully, Peppi here was able to blindside the doctor and incapacitate him." I step up to the gungan in question and smile at her. "Nice work Peppi. I told you we needed you out here."

This makes her smile at the praise. I think the fact that she was able to take down the sick maker that was going to destroy so many lives probably also makes her feel better considering she wasn't able to go down into the lab. With the doctor now in custody and the bombs deactivated, all we need to do now is mop up the droids, gather the bombs, grab all traces of the virus, and demolish the lab and its equipment so it'll never be used by the Separatists again, nor be used to manufacture anymore biological weapons.

What could go wrong?

* * *

 **Mat is going to come to regret those words isn't he? Anyway, their really isn't a lot that went on that Mat overall changed, besides making it so that Peppi knew her role in staying outside was indeed important and thanking her for her actions. While yes she wouldn't be able to do much inside the lab seeing as she doesn't have a blaster, her role in staying outside, while boring, was indeed a very important one. That's something I can respect.**

 **GIANTPANDAMAN:** I'll do what I can to maybe make her appear more, although I don't know exactly when and at what points I could add her again, but I'll do what I can. Sorry for not updating soon. Things kind of just got really distracted for me.

 **Ironknight3307:** Yeah, originally I wasn't intending to kill him but while I was writing the chapter I just thought of it and started to see it as a good idea to do. It was a little satisfying to write as well, though of course pretty traumatizing for Mat. As for pairings, Ahsoka being one obvious choice, Chuchi being another as I always liked her and would like to add more of her. Its still kind of up in the air to be honest.

 **His-Lady-Outlaw (Ch.1):** Sorry about that. Pretty much I wanted something to grab peoples attention right off the bat when they read the story. Worked most of the time but yeah, I can see what you mean. Sorry about that. Hopefully the rest of the story is to your liking.

 **I got to be honest, I was debating between whether or not I should actually devote a chapter to this one episode and just skip to the aftermath episode, but then I figured I should just go ahead and do it. Mostly filler I guess you could say but I just wanted to get something out seeing as how I have been sorely overdue for a chapter on this story and for that I apologize. Hopefully, I won't take as long in writing a new chapter but I expect some things to change in my everyday life within the next few weeks. Still, I'm sorry for the delay.**

 **Thank you all for your support. Go ahead and fave, follow, review, don't, whatever you want, but make sure to have fun reading, and most of all have a great day everyone.**


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